| Season | 1998 |
|---|---|
| Dates | Regular season: 18 July – 14 October 1998 Championship: 17–31 October 1998 |
| Champions | Suwon Samsung Bluewings (1st title) |
| Asian Club Championship | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Cup Winners' Cup | Anyang LG Cheetahs |
| Matches played | 90 |
| Goals scored | 275 (3.06 per match) |
| Best Player | Ko Jong-soo |
| Top goalscorer | Yoo Sang-chul (14 goals) |
← 1997 1999 → | |
The 1998 K League was the 16th season of South Korean professional football league, and was the first season to have been named the "K League". This season is called the "Renaissance of K League" in South Korea. Despite the poor performance of South Korea team at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 1998 season of K League recorded a total of 2 million spectators with young star players' popularity for the first time. The three most popular players of them Ko Jong-soo, Lee Dong-gook, and Ahn Jung-hwan were called the "K League Troika".[1]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OW | PW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 18 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 33 | 22 | +11 | 31 | Qualification for the playoffs final |
| 2 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 18 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 37 | 26 | +11 | 28 | Qualification for the playoffs semi-final |
| 3 | Pohang Steelers | 18 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 34 | 23 | +11 | 28 | Qualification for the playoffs first round |
| 4 | Jeonnam Dragons | 18 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 21 | 20 | +1 | 26 | |
| 5 | Busan Daewoo Royals | 18 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 27 | 22 | +5 | 25 | |
| 6 | Jeonbuk Hyundai Dinos | 18 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 30 | 35 | −5 | 25 | |
| 7 | Bucheon SK | 18 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 28 | 32 | −4 | 24 | |
| 8 | Anyang LG Cheetahs | 18 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 28 | 28 | 0 | 23 | Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup |
| 9 | Daejeon Citizen | 18 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 20 | 35 | −15 | 14 | |
| 10 | Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma | 18 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 17 | 32 | −15 | 11 |
| First round | Semi-final | Final | ||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i (p) | 2 | 2 | 4 (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 1R | Pohang Steelers | 3 | 1 | 4 (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | Pohang Steelers (p) | 0 (5) | ||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Jeonnam Dragons | 0 (3) | ||||||||||||||||
| SF | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 1 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Pos | Team | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings (C) | Qualification for the Asian Club Championship |
| 2 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | |
| 3 | Pohang Steelers | |
| 4 | Jeonnam Dragons |
Source:[2]
