1998 Major League Soccer season
The 1998 Major League Soccer season was the third season of Major League Soccer. Chicago Fire and Miami Fusion played their inaugural seasons as the first two MLS expansion teams. Chicago would become the first expansion team to win the MLS Cup and the first to win it in the inaugural year.Final standings
- 3 points were awarded for a win.
- 1 point was awarded for a shootout win and considered a win in the standings.
- No points were awarded for a loss or a shootout loss, with the latter being considered a loss in the standings
- The top four teams in each conference advanced to the playoffs.
Western Conference
Bracket
Eastern Conference
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- Columbus Crew advance 2–0, to the Conference Finals.
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Western Conference
- Los Angeles Galaxy advance 2–0, to the Conference Finals.
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- Chicago Fire advance 2–0, to the Conference Finals.
Conference finals
Eastern Conference
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Western Conference
- Chicago Fire advance 2–0, to MLS Cup '98
MLS Cup '98
- Chicago Fire and D.C. United earn MLS berths to 1999 CONCACAF Champions' Cup.
Player awards
Weekly award
Monthly awards
End of year awards
| Award | Player | Team |
| Most Valuable Player |  Marco Etcheverry | D.C. United |
| Scoring Champion |  Stern John – | Columbus Crew |
| Defender of the Year |  Lubos Kubik | Chicago Fire |
| Goalkeeper of the Year |  Zach Thornton | Chicago Fire |
| Rookie of the Year | Ben Olsen | D.C. United |
| Coach of the Year | Bob Bradley | Chicago Fire |
| Goal of the Year | Brian McBride | Columbus Crew |
| Fair Play Award | Thomas Dooley | Columbus Crew |
Player statistics
Top goal scorers
Attendance
| Club | Games | Home Total | Home Average |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | 16 | 348,549 | 21,784 |
| New England Revolution | 16 | 307,004 | 19,187 |
| Chicago Fire | 16 | 286,190 | 17,886 |
| MetroStars | 16 | 264,316 | 16,519 |
| D.C. United | 16 | 256,127 | 16,007 |
| Colorado Rapids | 16 | 236,995 | 14,812 |
| San Jose Clash | 16 | 218,450 | 13,653 |
| Columbus Crew | 16 | 196,394 | 12,274 |
| Dallas Burn | 16 | 175,162 | 10,947 |
| Tampa Bay Mutiny | 16 | 164,999 | 10,312 |
| Miami Fusion | 16 | 164,548 | 10,284 |
| Kansas City Wizards | 16 | 129,163 | 8,072 |
| OVERALL | 192 | 2,747,897 | 14,311 |
International Competition
CONCACAF Champions' Cup
Defeat Joe Public F.C. 8–0 in quarterfinals.
Defeat Deportivo Saprissa 2-0 in semifinals.
Defeat Toluca 1–0 in final.
Lose Club León 4–3 on aggregate in qualifying round.
Interamerican Cup
Defeat Vasco da Gama 2–1 on aggregate.
First leg played at RFK Stadium
Second leg played at Lockhart Stadium.Coaches
Eastern Conference
