1998 Fed Cup
The 1998 Fed Cup was the 36th edition of the most important competition between national teams in women's tennis. In the final, Spain defeated Switzerland at Palexpo Hall in Geneva, Switzerland on 19–20 September, giving Spain its fifth title.


1998 Fed Cup, World Group Play-offs
The four losing teams in the World Group first round ties (Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany and Netherlands), and four winners of the World Group II ties (Croatia, Italy, Russia and Slovakia) entered the draw for the World Group Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup, World Group II
The World Group II was the second highest level of Fed Cup competition in 1998. Winners advanced to the World Group Play-offs, and losers played in the World Group II Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup, World Group II Play-offs
The four losing teams from World Group II (Argentina, Australia, Austria and Japan) played off against qualifiers from Zonal Group I. Two teams qualified from Europe/Africa Zone (Belarus and Poland), one team from the Asia/Oceania Zone (South Korea), and one team from the Americas Zone (Venezuela).


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone
The Americas Zone was one of three zones of regional competition in the 1998 Fed Cup.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone, Group I
The nine teams were first randomly divided into three pools of three teams to compete in round-robin competitions. The nine teams were then divided into three new pools based on their placing in their first pools, which would be used to determine each team's overall placing in the zonal group. The team that finished first overall would be promoted to the World Group II Play-offs, while the teams that finished eighth and ninth would be relegated to Group II for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone, Group II
The sixteen teams were divided into two pools of eight. The top team from each pool then moved would advance to Group I for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I – Initial Pool A
Initial Group A of the 1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition, with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I – Initial Pool B
Initial Group B of the 1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition, with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I – Initial Pool C
Initial Group C of the 1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition, with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I – Placement Pool A
Placement Group A of the 1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed first in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to the World Group II Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I – Placement Pool B
Placement Group B of the 1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed second in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group I – Placement Pool C
Placement Group C of the 1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed third in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition, with the teams placing second and third relegated to Group II for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group II – Pool A
Group A was one of two pools in the Americas Zone Group II of the 1998 Fed Cup. Eight teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to Group I in 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Americas Zone Group II – Pool B
Group B was one of two pools in the Americas Zone Group II of the 1998 Fed Cup. Eight teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to Group I in 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone
The Asia/Oceania Zone was one of three zones of regional competition in the 1998 Fed Cup.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone, Group I
The nine teams were first randomly divided into three pools of three teams to compete in round-robin competitions. The nine teams were then divided into three new pools based on their placing in their first pools, which would be used to determine each team's overall placing in the zonal group. The team that finished first overall would be promoted to the World Group II Play-offs, while the team that finished ninth would be relegated to Group II for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone, Group II
The nine teams were first randomly divided into three pools of three teams to compete in round-robin competitions. The nine teams were then divided into three new pools based on their placing in their first pools, which would be used to determine each team's overall placing in the zonal group. The teams that finished first and second overall would be promoted to Group I for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I – Initial Pool A
Initial Group A of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I – Initial Pool B
Initial Group B of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I – Initial Pool C
Initial Group C of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I – Placement Pool A
Placement Group A of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed first in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to the World Group II Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I – Placement Pool B
Placement Group B of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed first in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to the World Group II Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I – Placement Pool C
Placement Group C of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Americas Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed first in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to the World Group II Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II – Initial Pool A
Initial Group A of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group II of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II – Initial Pool B
Initial Group B of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group II of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II – Initial Pool C
Initial Group C of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group II of the 1998 Fed Cup. Three teams competed in a round robin competition with the team coming first advancing to Placement Pool A, the team coming second going to Placement Pool B, and the team coming last falling to Placement Pool C.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II – Placement Pool A
Placement Group A of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group II of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed first in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to the World Group II Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II – Placement Pool B
Placement Group B of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group II of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed second in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition.


1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II – Placement Pool C
Placement Group C of the 1998 Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II was one of six pools in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group II of the 1998 Fed Cup. The three teams that placed third in the initial pools competed in a round robin competition, with the team placing last relegated to Group II for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone
The Europe/Africa Zone was one of three zones of regional competition in the 1998 Fed Cup.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone, Group I
The sixteen teams were divided into four pools of four teams. The top teams of each pool play-off in a two-round knockout stage to decide which nations progress to World Group II play-offs. The three nations winning the least rubbers were relegated to Europe/Africa Zone Group II for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone, Group II
The twenty-two teams were divided into two pools of five and six. The top teams from each pool advanced to Group I for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I – Knockout Stage
The Knockout Stage of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I was the final stage of the Zonal Competition involving teams from Europe and Africa. Those that qualified for this stage placed first and second in their respective pools.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I – Knockout Stage
The eight teams were then randomly drawn into two two-stage knockout tournaments, with the winners advancing to the World Group II Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I – Pool A
Group A of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I was one of four pools in the Europe/Africa Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Four teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top two teams advancing to the knockout stage.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I – Pool B
Group B of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I was one of four pools in the Europe/Africa Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Four teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top two teams advancing to the knockout stage.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I – Pool C
Group C of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I was one of four pools in the Europe/Africa Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Four teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top two teams advancing to the knockout stage.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I – Pool D
Group D of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I was one of four pools in the Europe/Africa Zone Group I of the 1998 Fed Cup. Four teams competed in a round monkey competition, with the top two teams advancing to the knockout stage.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II – Pool A
Group A of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II was one of five pools in the Europe/Africa zone of the 1998 Fed Cup. Five teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to Group I for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II – Pool B
Group B of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II was one of five pools in the Europe/Africa zone of the 1998 Fed Cup. Five teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to Group I for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II – Pool C
Group C of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II was one of five pools in the Europe/Africa zone of the 1998 Fed Cup. Five teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to Group I for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II – Pool D
Group D of the 1998 Fed Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II was one of five pools in the Europe/Africa zone of the 1998 Fed Cup. Five teams competed in a round robin competition, with the top team advancing to Group I for 1999.


1998 Fed Cup World Group
The World Group was the highest level of Fed Cup competition in 1998. Eight nations competed in a three-round knockout competition. France was the defending champion, but they were defeated in the semifinals by Switzerland. Spain defeated Switzerland to capture their fifth title.


1998 Fed Cup World Group II
The World Group II was the second highest level of Fed Cup competition in 1998. Winning nations advanced to the World Group Play-offs, and the losing nations were demoted to the World Group II Play-offs.


1998 Fed Cup World Group II Play-offs
The 1998 World Group II Play-offs were four ties which involved the losing nations of the World Group II and four nations from the three Zonal Group I competitions. Nations that won their play-off ties entered the 1999 World Group II, while losing nations joined their respective zonal groups.


1998 Fed Cup World Group Play-offs
The World Group Play-offs were four ties which involved the losing nations of the World Group first round and the winning nations of the World Group II. Nations that won their play-off ties entered the 1999 World Group, while losing nations joined the 1999 World Group II.


1998 Finlandia Trophy
The Finlandia Trophy is an annual senior-level international figure skating competition held in Finland. It was held in Helsinki on October 2–4. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, and ice dancing.


1998 Finnish Cup
The 1998 Finnish Cup (Finnish: Suomen Cup) was the 44th season of the main annual association football cup competition in Finland. It was organised as a single-elimination knock–out tournament and participation in the competition was voluntary. The final was held at the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki on 31 October 1998 with HJK defeating PK-35 by 3-2 before an attendance of 5,023 spectators.


1998 Finnish Figure Skating Championships
The 1998 Finnish Figure Skating Championships took place between December 20 and 21, 1997 in Helsinki. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles, women's singles, and ice dancing. The event was used to help determine the Finnish team to the 1998 European Championships.


1998 Five Nations Championship
The 1998 Five Nations Championship was the sixty-ninth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-fourth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends from 7 February to 5 April. France won it with a Grand Slam. England had the consolation of winning the Triple Crown, the Calcutta Cup and the Millennium Trophy.


1998 Florida Attorney General election
The 1998 Florida Attorney General election was held on November 3, 1998. Democratic incumbent Bob Butterworth defeated Republican nominee David H. Bludworth with 59.56% of the vote. As of 2021, this is the most recent time a Democrat was elected Florida Attorney General.


1998 Florida Citrus Bowl
The 1998 Florida Citrus Bowl featured the Florida Gators and the Penn State Nittany Lions.


1998 Florida Citrus Bowl, Background
Penn State was ranked #1 for the first three weeks of the season and were 7–0 before a loss to eventual national champion Michigan. They won two of their last three games but ultimately finished tied for second in the Big Ten Conference. The defending national champion Gators were ranked #1 for three weeks in the season as well, though two losses to LSU and Georgia within two weeks of each other knocked Florida out of the contention for the Southeastern Conference title, though they finished the regular season in the AP top 10 for the fifth straight year. This was both Florida and Penn State's third appearance.


1998 Florida Citrus Bowl, Game summary
Noah Brindise gave Florida a 7–0 lead on a touchdown sneak after an 80-yard drive that took only 4:12 and had Fred Taylor contribute 47 yards of rushing. While trying to respond, Mike McQueary's pass was intercepted by Fred Weary and returned to the 35. Doug Johnson followed with a touchdown pass to Jacquez Green to make it 14–0 a few plays later. Travis Forney made it 14–3 after a field goal set up by a Johnson interception. Midway through the third quarter, Forney made it 14–6 on his second kick.


1998 Florida Citrus Bowl, Game summary
After Johnson's injury to his shoulder, Jesse Palmer stepped in as quarterback and led Florida to an early fourth quarter touchdown pass to Green to make the final score 21–6 as Penn State was stifled by the defense of Florida. McQueary went 10 of 32 for 92 yards and 3 interceptions while Penn State had only one yard of rushing in the first half en route to only 47 the whole day. Fred Taylor ended his career at Florida with the most rushing yards in Citrus Bowl history, rushing for 234 yards on 43 carries.


1998 Florida Citrus Bowl, Aftermath
Florida has returned to the Citrus Bowl in 2000, 2008 and 2016, while Penn State did so in 2003 and 2010.


1998 Florida Commissioner of Agriculture election
The 1998 Florida Commissioner of Agriculture election took place on November 3, 1998, to elect the Florida Commissioner of Agriculture. The incumbent,  Robert B. Crawford, won re-election and easily defeated Republican Rich Faircloth.


1998 Florida Commissioner of Agriculture election
Robert B. Crawford would go on to serve under three different Governors, Lawton Chiles, Buddy MacKay, and Jeb Bush.


1998 Florida Gators baseball team
The 1998 Florida Gators baseball team represented the University of Florida in the sport of baseball during the 1998 college baseball season. The Gators competed in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They played their home games at Alfred A. McKethan Stadium, on the university's Gainesville, Florida campus. The team was coached by Andy Lopez, who was in his fourth season at Florida.


1998 Florida Gators football team
The 1998 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season was the Florida Gators football team's ninth under head coach Steve Spurrier. [ Spurrier's 1998 Florida Gators compiled an overall record of 10–2 and a Southeastern Conference (SEC) record of 7–1, placing second among the six teams of the SEC Eastern Division.


1998 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Tennessee
After Peyton Manning and several other star players moved on to the NFL after the 1997 season, most preseason prognosticators saw Tennessee's 1998 squad as taking a step backward from championship contention. However, they were still ranked No. 6 when the No. 2 Gators rolled into Knoxville looking to beat their rivals for the sixth consecutive year.


1998 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Tennessee
It was not to be. Led by junior quarterback Tee Martin and a stout defense, the Vols recovered four Gators fumbles, held their opponent to -30 yards rushing, and slowed UF's two-quarterback passing attack, which featured Doug Johnson and Jesse Palmer alternating plays. The game was close throughout, with the score knotted at 10 at halftime and 17 at the end of regulation. Tennessee was held to a Jeff Hall field goal during their first possession of overtime. When it was UF's turn, placekicker Collins Cooper missed an answering field goal, giving UT a 20–17 win and inspiring the jubilant home fans to rush the turf of Neyland Stadium and tear down the goalposts.


1998 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Florida State
This 1998 battle between the in state rivals started before the whistle even blew. A pre-game fight caused Florida's starting senior safety, Tony George, and a couple walk-on FSU players who were not even dressed, to be ejected from the game. In the midst of the fight, it is rumored that Florida quarterback Doug Johnson attempted to peg FSU coach Bobby Bowden with a football. Johnson did later apologize to Bowden, claiming that he had no target, he just threw the ball.


1998 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Florida State
Florida State's defense came in the ballgame rated No. 1 in the nation, Florida's defense was rated No. 1 in the SEC, so the game was set to be a defensive battle. Florida struck first with a 50-yard Doug Johnson touchdown pass, but Seminoles Peter Warrick and Travis Minor put the Seminoles in scoring position twice and Placekicker Sebastian Janikowski kicked two field goals to make the game 7–6. After a Florida punt the Seminoles were at their own 5-yard-line and Florida forced a safety. And then Doug Johnson drove Florida deep into Florida State territory after the safety kick, but Florida State's defense stiffened and forced Florida to settle for three points. At halftime, the game was 12–6, Florida.


1998 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Florida State
In the second half Florida State's defense held Florida scoreless. Florida State's first touchdown of the game came when Seminoles quarterback Marcus Outzen connected with Peter Warrick on a touchdown throw, then later in the game, Peter Warrick threw a touchdown to Ron Dugans. The game ended 23–12, with Florida State the winner.


1998 Florida Marlins season
The Florida Marlins' 1998 season was the sixth season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise in the National League. It would begin with the team attempting to defend their World Series Champion title, having won the title in 1997. Their manager was Jim Leyland. They played home games at Pro Player Stadium, and finished with a record of 54–108, the worst record in all of baseball. The team is notable for having arguably the biggest fire sale in sports history, auctioning off nearly all of their most notable players.


1998 Florida Marlins season
The 1998 Marlins were the first defending World Series champions to finish last in their division and the first to lose 100 games. To make matters worse, the expansion Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who also finished last in their own division (the AL East), were nine games better than the Marlins, at 63-99.


1998 Florida Marlins season
The Marlins won on opening day against the Chicago Cubs, but it would be the only time they were over .500 all season. They promptly lost 11 straight, the most consecutive losses by a reigning champion. By the end of May, they were 17-38, 21 games under .500, and their season was all but over. The Marlins would finish 0–9 against three teams: Cincinnati, San Francisco, and Milwaukee. The 1998 Marlins are the most recent team to finish winless against three separate opponents.


1998 Florida Marlins season, Regular season, Citrus Series
The first interleague game between the Florida Marlins and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays took place at Tropicana Field. The rivalry would be known as the Citrus Series. The Marlins won the game in twelve innings by a score of 3–2 and would go on to win the season series 3 games to 1.


1998 Florida Marlins season, Player stats, Batting, Starters by position
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in


1998 Florida State Seminoles baseball team
The 1998 Florida State Seminoles baseball team represented Florida State University in the 1998 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Seminoles played their home games at Dick Howser Stadium, and played as part of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The team was coached by Mike Martin in his nineteenth season as head coach at Florida State.


1998 Florida State Seminoles baseball team
The Seminoles reached the College World Series, their fifteenth appearance in Omaha, where they finished tied for seventh place after recording losses to eventual runner-up Arizona State and fourth-place Long Beach State.


1998 Florida State Seminoles football team
The 1998 Florida State Seminoles football team represented Florida State University in the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Bobby Bowden and played their home games at Doak Campbell Stadium.


1998 Florida State Seminoles football team
The Seminoles were the runner up in the first BCS Championship game at the Fiesta Bowl against the Tennessee Volunteers.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election
The 1998 Florida gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 1998, to determine the Governor for the State of Florida. Two-term Democratic incumbent Governor Lawton Chiles was term-limited and could not run for re-election. John Ellis "Jeb" Bush, who had previously run for governor in 1994 was the Republican nominee, and incumbent Lieutenant Governor Kenneth Hood "Buddy" MacKay was the Democratic nominee. Bush defeated MacKay by nearly 11% of the vote, and won his first of two terms as governor.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election
Jeb Bush was one of four GOP pickups nationwide in the 1998 gubernatorial elections. Nonetheless, the Republican party still netted a loss of one governorship.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election
On December 12, 1998, incumbent Governor Lawton Chiles died, thrusting MacKay into the governor's office, for which he had just lost the election, for 23 days. This was the second election in which MacKay had unsuccessfully run to succeed Chiles in an elected office, the first being the 1988 Senate race.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election, Primary results
The primary season was largely uneventful, as MacKay (D) and Bush (R) officially ran unopposed for their respective nominations. Initially the Democratic primary saw a three-way race between MacKay, Rick Dantzler and J. Keith Arnold, but the latter two dropped out of the race early on. Dantzler became MacKay's running mate for lieutenant governor, and Arnold ran for Education Commissioner instead.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election, Primary results
The lack of competitiveness saw a very low turnout of just 16.6% of voters for the September 1 primary.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election, General election
Jeb Bush enjoyed double-digit leads in polling through most of the campaign, and had a large fundraising advantage over MacKay. Bush attempted to revamp his image after appearing too hard-right during the 1994 race. Internal struggles amongst key Democratic constituencies, particularly the African-American community, hurt MacKay. MacKay and the Florida Democratic party drew the ire of the black community after state representative Willie Logan, poised to become the first black speaker of the Florida House, was ousted by party leaders. Logan endorsed Bush in the general election.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election, General election
Meanwhile, after receiving only 5% of the African-American vote in 1994, Bush sought to connect to minorities, a group he admittedly ignored in 1994. Setting a tone of compassionate conservatism, and portraying himself as a "consensus-building pragmatist," he met with African American leaders, and reached out to Jews and Hispanics. He introduced his Mexican-born wife Columba on the campaign trail, and demonstrated his fluent bi-lingual abilities, particularly in South Florida. MacKay ran from behind for the entire race, and barely managed closed to gap to ten points in the days leading up to the general election.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election, General election
On election day, Bush won by almost 11%. He garnered 61% of the Hispanic vote and 14% of the African American vote, a surprising showing for a Republican seeking statewide office. With his brother George W. Bush winning re-election in Texas, the two brothers became the first siblings to govern two states at the same time since Nelson and Winthrop Rockefeller governed New York and Arkansas from 1967 to 1971. Despite his strong statewide showing, Bush was unable to provide coattails for other republicans further down the ticket. Charlie Crist was easily defeated in his Senate race, and House Republicans did not pick up any seats in the midterms. In the state legislature, the GOP netted no new Senate seats, and picked up only two seats in the House.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election, General election
A little over a month after the election, Lawton Chiles died suddenly of a heart attack. Buddy MacKay, still the sitting lieutenant governor, was sworn in as the 42nd governor of Florida on December 13, 1998, and served out the final 23 days of Chiles' second term. In an ironic twist, MacKay managed to serve in the office he lost the race for, but stated "There's no great pleasure in this." MacKay oversaw the state funeral of Chiles, and made a handful of minor appointments, before Bush was sworn in as the 43rd Governor on January 5, 1999.


1998 Florida gubernatorial election, Videos
(1) Midterm Election Coverage, which includes Bush's victory speech from November 3, 1998


1998 Florida wildfires
The 1998 Florida wildfires, sometimes referred to as the Florida Firestorm, was a wildfire event involving several thousand separate woodland and mixed urban-rural wildfires which wrought severe damage during the summer months of 1998. Wildfires sparked mainly by lightning threatened to converge into single, vast blazes, crossed natural firebreaks such as rivers and interstate highways, and demanded an unprecedented suppression response of firefighting resources from across the country. Regular activities such as Fourth of July celebrations, sporting events, tourism, and daily life were profoundly interrupted for millions of residents and visitors in the northeastern part of the state.


1998 Florida wildfires, Background
Florida had historically been considered as an area of lower susceptibility for wildfires, due to its high humidity and rainfall levels. An El Nino during the winter of 1998 produced above-average rainfall, which enabled extensive growth of underbrush and vegetation in the state's forests. In early April, however, the rains came to an abrupt halt, and the ensuing drought lasted until July. These months of continuing dry conditions saw the drought index rise to 700 (out of 800), indicating wildfire potential similar to that usually found in western states.


1998 Florida wildfires, Background
Exacerbating the wildfire risk was the fact that development in Florida had proceeded with many new communities being built on former rural, wooded properties, often with heavy vegetation within feet of structures, and without municipal water systems and fire hydrants.


1998 Florida wildfires, Fires
The fires began in mid-May, most started by lightning strikes. What rain came with the thunderstorms was inadequate to prevent or stop the fires. In late May and early June, numerous separate fires were igniting in Brevard, Osceola, Orange, Seminole, St. John's, Flagler, and Volusia counties, near the communities of Flagler Estates, Daytona Beach, and Palm Coast. The Big Bend region also experienced major fires in the Apalachicola and Osceola National Forests. With dry conditions persisting and alarm over the fires growing, on June 7, Governor Lawton Chiles declared a state of emergency.


1998 Florida wildfires, Fires
By mid-June, fires burning near I-95 forced its closure in the area. During the middle two weeks of June, each day saw the fires grow larger and everyday life more interrupted, and on June 25, in consideration of the upcoming Independence Day celebration, the Governor declared all sales and possession of fireworks illegal. Friday and Saturday, June 26 and 27 saw some abatement of conditions with the arrival of rain, and Monday the 28th, Federal agencies brought in firefighting resources including helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.


1998 Florida wildfires, Fires
By July 1, however, increasing winds once again worsened conditions, and the firebreak of I-95 was soon jumped as embers were blown eastward from fires burning in woodlands west of the interstate. By July 4, 135 miles of I-95 from Jacksonville to Titusville was closed, and Division of Forestry models indicated that several fires could merge into one conflagration stretching from Daytona to St. Augustine. The entire population of Flagler County, some 35,000 residents, was ordered to evacuate. The Pepsi 400, usually held at Daytona International Speedway on the Fourth of July weekend, was postponed.


1998 Florida wildfires, Fires
That was the day that news media, learning that firefighters were short of bandanas used as protective face covers, sent out the call for as many bananas as could be supplied, and firefighters were inundated with truckloads of the fruit. On July 5, the tide finally turned as rains and humidity increased. By mid-July, with most fires under control, over 2000 individual wildfires had burned in Florida, destroying nearly 500,000 acres, 150 structures, and 86 vehicles.


1998 Florida wildfires, Response
The response to the fires was unprecedented at the time, involving local, state, and federal resources and as many as 10,000 firefighters from across the United States. The Army, Marines and National Guard brought in personnel and equipment, and five hotshot firefighting teams participated. Sikorsky Skycranes, a Canadair "Superscooper" from North Carolina and numerous other aircraft participated directly in firefighting. Public Health Departments in several counties opened special needs shelters, while the Salvation Army and Red Cross opened general shelters.


1998 Florida wildfires, Response
County Emergency Operations Centers were at high alert, coordinating the efforts of firefighters, law enforcement, environmental health, transportation officials, communications specialists and amateur radio operators. At one point, even a local concrete company volunteered into service, using its trucks to transport water from a hydrant to a drying pond from which aircraft were picking up water. Governor Lawton Chiles was quoted as saying, "we have about half of the country's firefighting assets in Florida right now."


1998 Florida wildfires, Aftermath
Losses from the fires were widespread and disastrous. Over 150 homes and structures were lost, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency issued a report stating that over $300 million of Florida's timber resources had burned. On July 4, the New York Times reported that firefighting efforts up to that day had amounted to $80 million. In the ensuing years, public and government attitudes regarding prescribed burning changed, with nearly ninety thousand authorizations annually allowing property owners and agencies to burn over two million acres annually. There have also been efforts to increase the presence of municipal hydrants in communities. No deaths were directly attributed to the wildfires, but the crew of one responding aircraft, a Sikorsky Skycrane, was tragically lost 25 miles from its destination enroute home when it developed a mechanical failure.


1998 Football League Cup Final
The 1998 Football League Cup Final was a football match played between Chelsea and Middlesbrough on 29 March 1998 at Wembley Stadium. Chelsea, under new manager Gianluca Vialli, won with two extra time goals and won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup later that season. Middlesbrough's second consecutive defeat in the final was followed by promotion back to the Premier League after just one season.


1998 Football League Cup Final
Both teams were restricted to shots from distance. This all changed in extra time when Chelsea took control. Frank Sinclair, a villain in the 1994 FA Cup Final defeat when conceding a penalty and slipping to allow Mark Hughes to score, became the hero in this match. He started the move that ended with his header finding the corner of the Middlesbrough net to open the scoring. Chelsea's second goal came from Roberto Di Matteo.


1998 Football League Cup Final
A corner played into the near post was not cleared by the Boro defence and Di Matteo was able to side foot the ball into the net on the half-volley. Di Matteo had come back to haunt Middlesbrough as he had scored the opening goal when the same sides met in the 1997 FA Cup Final the previous season. Once again Chelsea had won 2–0.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final
The 1998 Football League First Division play-off Final was an association football match played on 25 May 1998 at Wembley Stadium, London, between Charlton Athletic and Sunderland. The match was to determine the third and final team to gain promotion from the Football League First Division, the second tier of English football, to the Premier League for the 1998–99 season.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final
The top two teams of the 1997–98 Football League First Division season gained automatic promotion, and the teams placed from third to sixth place in the table took part in play-off semi-finals; Sunderland had ended the season in third position and Charlton had finished fourth. The clubs won their semi-finals and competed for the final promotion place. Winning the game was estimated to be worth up to twenty million pounds to the successful team.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final
The match was played in front of almost 78,000 spectators and was refereed by Eddie Wolstenholme. Clive Mendonca opened the scoring for Charlton midway through the first half, before Niall Quinn equalised early in the second. Kevin Phillips then scored his 35th goal of the season to put Sunderland ahead but Mendonca doubled his own tally with fewer than twenty minutes remaining. Quinn restored Sunderland's lead two minutes later, before a Richard Rufus header for Charlton five minutes from the end of regular time made the score 3–3, and sent the game into extra time.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final
Nicky Summerbee then gave Sunderland the lead for the third time before Mendonca completed his hat-trick, the first player to do so in a play-off final. Extra time ended 4–4, so the game was determined by a penalty shootout. Both teams scored their first five spot-kicks before the shootout moved to 'sudden death'. Michael Gray stepped forward to take Sunderland's seventh penalty, but his weak strike was saved by the Charlton goalkeeper Saša Ilić and Charlton won 7–6 on penalties.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final
Sunderland ended their following season as champions of the First Division, amassing a record 105 points, and were promoted to the 1999–2000 Premier League. Charlton's next season saw them finish in eighteenth position, five points from safety, and relegated back to the First Division. The 1998 play-off final is considered by players, managers, pundits and the media to be one of the most memorable and dramatic games played at Wembley.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Sunderland finished the regular 1997–98 season in third place in the Football League First Division, the second tier of the English football league system, one place ahead of Charlton Athletic. Both therefore missed out on the two automatic places for promotion to the Premier League and instead took part in that season's play-offs to determine the third promoted team. Sunderland finished one point behind Middlesbrough (who were promoted in second place) and four behind league winners Nottingham Forest. Charlton ended the season two points behind Sunderland.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Charlton faced Ipswich Town in their play-off semi-final and the first leg was played at Portman Road in Ipswich on 10 May 1998. An early own goal from Jamie Clapham decided the ill-disciplined match in which nine yellow cards were shown, including two to Charlton's Danny Mills who was dismissed in the 73rd minute. The match ended 1–0 and secured Charlton's eighth consecutive clean sheet. Arguments between the players continued after the final whistle culminating in an altercation in the players' lounge in which Ipswich defender Mauricio Taricco's nose was broken by Neil Heaney.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Route to the final
The second leg was played three days later at Charlton's home ground, The Valley, and once again ended in a 1–0 victory to the London club. Although Ipswich dominated in periods of the second half, they only forced one save from Saša Ilić, the opposition goalkeeper. Charlton won the tie 2–0 on aggregate and qualified for the play-off final.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Sunderland's opponents for their play-off semi-final were Sheffield United, the first leg being played at Bramall Lane in Sheffield on 10 May 1998. Kevin Ball put the visiting team into an early lead, scoring after 17 minutes, but Marcelo equalised before Vassilios Borbokis scored the winner with 14 minutes to go, the match ending 2–1 to Sheffield United. The return leg was played at the Stadium of Light three days later, Sunderland taking the lead midway through the first half after Nicky Marker deflected a cross-shot from Allan Johnston past his own goalkeeper.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Seven minutes before half time, Kevin Phillips doubled Sunderland's lead with his 34th goal of the season. With 17 minutes of the second half remaining, the Sunderland goalkeeper Lionel Pérez made two saves to deny Graham Stuart before keeping Paul Devlin's shot out with what the BBC described as "a truly world-class save". The match ended 2–0 to Sunderland who progressed to the final with a 3–2 aggregate victory.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
That season, the Charlton manager Alan Curbishley had invested around £1.7 million in his squad, signing Clive Mendonca from Grimsby Town for £700,000. Other signings included Mills, Matty Holmes and Eddie Youds, while Ilić was acquired on a free transfer from semi-professional team St. Leonards of the Southern Football League (known at that time as the Dr Martens League for sponsorship reasons);  he went on to be selected over Charlton's 1996–97 player of the year Andy Petterson.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
Before the season commenced, Russell Kempson wrote in The Times that he considered Sunderland to be among the favourites for promotion back to the Premier League, along with Middlesbrough and Wolverhampton Wanderers. He added that "Alan Curbishley will continue to do a good job at The Valley, yet achieve nothing tangible". The Liverpool Echo noted that Sunderland had suffered relegation as a result of a failure to score towards the end of the previous season, and Peter Reid's investment of more than £4 million in the transfer market sought to address that issue.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
Mendonca was the highest scorer for Charlton with 25 goals in 44 appearances across all competitions during the regular 1997–98 season, followed by the midfielder John Robinson with 9 goals in 42 matches. Sunderland had paid £350,000 for Phillips in July 1997 and he formed a prolific strike partnership with club-record signing Niall Quinn throughout the season: Phillips had scored 33 times in 44 appearances, and Quinn 15 times from 37 games. Phillips had also been named the League Player of the Year. Reid wrote in his 2017 autobiography that Phillips was "arguably the best signing [he] ever made".


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
This was Charlton's second appearance in the second tier play-off final, having beaten Leeds United after a replay in the two-legged 1987 Football League Second Division play-off Final. Sunderland were also making their second appearance in a second-tier play-off final: despite losing 1–0 to Swindon Town in the 1990 Football League Second Division play-off Final at the old Wembley Stadium, they were promoted as Swindon were later found guilty of financial misconduct. Charlton had played in the second tier of English football for the last eight seasons, having been relegated from the First Division in the 1989–90 season.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
Sunderland were aiming to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking, having been relegated in the previous season. During the regular season, both games between the sides had ended in a draw: the match at the Stadium of Light in November 1997 was goalless, while the return fixture the following March resulted in a 1–1 draw.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
With Charlton's run of nine consecutive clean sheets and a series of 1–0 victories leading up to the final, their captain Mark Kinsella acknowledged the club's reputation for being "boring" but noted "at this stage of the season it's not about the performances, it's about results and we have been coming up trumps".


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
Kinsella himself had opted to take part in the play-off final in preference to collecting his third cap for the Republic of Ireland in a friendly in Dublin against Mexico two days prior, suggesting the domestic match was "the biggest game in Charlton's history" and that as club captain, he "had to be there". Curbishley noted that his club were "firmly back on the map" and that "people ... are talking about what a good side we are".


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
Before the final, the Charlton board of directors announced that a new West Stand would be complete before the start of the next season and that a new £1 million sponsorship deal with Mesh Computers had been agreed with the newly embellished shirts being worn for the match. The Sunderland manager Peter Reid was resolute: "This is a massive, massive game for Sunderland Football Club, and it's one which I am confident my lads can win – if they are at their best."


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
Previewing the match, Liam Kirk writing in the Irish Independent predicted a close game and that both teams would "satisfy the neutral and both rely on strikers plucked astutely from obscurity". Irish bookmaker Paddy Power had Sunderland as favourites to win, while former England international Gary Stevens also thought the Wearside club had the advantage.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
For Sunderland, Quinn had recovered from a recurring hamstring injury he aggravated in the second leg of the play-off semi-final against Sheffield United, while Phillips was also fit after suffering a thigh strain in the same match. Charlton's Robinson was selected on the bench having not played for eight weeks following a hairline fracture of his right leg. The referee for the match was Eddie Wolstenholme;  he had officiated the second leg of the semi-final between Ipswich and Charlton.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Background
It was reported in the press that the match was worth £5–10 million, and later by Deloitte to be worth up to £20 million, to the winning team from television revenue. The match was broadcast live in the UK on Sky Sports. Charlton wore their traditional red and white kit while Sunderland were in an away strip of old gold and dark blue.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, First half
The match kicked off around 3 p.m. in front of a Wembley crowd of 77,739, around 35,000 of which were Charlton supporters. Their team  started the better, with a strong defence and a midfield which disrupted Sunderland's passing. The first chance fell to Sunderland in the 14th minute following an error from Ilić, and six minutes later Ball was unmarked but his header from a Nicky Summerbee corner went over Charlton's crossbar. In the 23rd minute Charlton took the lead. Mills' throw-in was flicked on to Mark Bright who passed to Mendonca.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, First half
He dummied Jody Craddock and struck from 15 yards (14 m), beating Pérez in the goal. Sunderland had opportunities to score through Ball and Quinn, although Gray was required to prevent Bright from scoring after a cross from Heaney. Towards the end of the half, Lee Clark's shot went over the Charlton goal before Youds' tackle prevented Summerbee from shooting. The whistle was blown by Wolstenholme and the half ended, 1–0 to Charlton.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Second half
During the break, Sunderland made their first substitution of the game, Chris Makin coming on to replace Darren Holloway. In the 50th minute, the score was levelled by Quinn. He evaded Youds to head a Summerbee corner between the near post and Mark Bowen, making it 1–1. Kinsella then came close to scoring from a free kick and Quinn missed a good chance, shooting over the crossbar, before Phillips put Sunderland ahead in the 58th minute. Having been put through by Clark, he lobbed Ilić to make it 2–1.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Second half
Charlton made their first change of the game minutes later, Heaney being replaced by Steve Jones. In the 71st minute, Richard Rufus passed to Mendonca, who took two touches and struck the ball into the Sunderland goal, levelling the match once again. Two minutes later, Quinn put Sunderland ahead: after controlling a deep cross from Clark using his chest, the Sunderland forward struck the ball past Ilić, making it 3–2. Phillips was then replaced by Danny Dichio who quickly missed a chance by electing to attempt a volley rather than a diving header from a Summerbee cross.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Second half
Mendonca was then prevented from scoring twice by the Sunderland defence, before Rufus brought the game level once again. Pérez missed an attempted clearance on a Robinson corner, having been blocked by Bright, and Rufus was left unmarked to score his first Charlton goal in 165 appearances for the club, and make it 3–3 with five minutes remaining. No further goals were scored so the game went into extra time.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Extra time and penalties
Early into the first period of extra time, Bright was taken off and replaced by Steve Brown. On eight minutes, Sunderland went ahead with their fourth goal of the match. A cushioned ball from Quinn found Summerbee who struck a shot from the edge of the penalty area past Ilić. Quinn then missed a chance from 6 yards (5.5 m) to convert Johnston's cross to score Sunderland's fifth. Alex Rae then came on to replace Clark.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Extra time and penalties
Minutes later, Steve Jones played to ball behind Mendonca whose first touch controlled it and whose second touch was to volley past Pérez, scoring his 28th goal of the season. Rae and Craddock both missed chances to score the winner for Sunderland, and extra time ended with the score level on 4–4; the match would need to be determined via a penalty shootout, which was to be conducted at the Sunderland end of the stadium. Sunderland went into the shootout without two of their regular penalty-takers as both Phillips and Clark had been replaced through injury.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Match, Extra time and penalties
Mendonca scored the first penalty, followed by Summerbee, Brown, Johnston, Keith Jones, Ball, Kinsella, Makin, Bowen and Rae, to make it 5–5 and take the shootout to sudden death. Robinson and Quinn then scored, to make it 6–6. Shaun Newton then stepped up to give the advantage to Charlton. Gray's weak shot was then saved by Ilić to his left and the match was over, Charlton winning 7–6 on penalties, and promotion to the Premier League.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Post-match
Kinsella was jubilant: "we battled to come from behind and we just kept going and going ... every time we fell behind I felt we could lose, but we just kept pulling them back." The Sunderland forward Quinn claimed that despite the loss, his team were "the best footballing side in this division" but stated he was "delighted for Charlton because we've battled it out with them all season". The Sunderland manager Reid said of Gray who missed the final penalty: "our crowd's reaction to him was second to none. But I feel for the kid, he's heartbroken".


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Post-match
Speaking of his team's performance, Reid noted: "I think our inexperience told in the first 45 minutes – we gave the ball away too cheaply". Mendonca offered sympathy to Sunderland's Gray, with whom he had attended Castle View School in Sunderland: "it must be a personal nightmare for him. Michael's a ... local Sunderland lad. It must hurt him so much." Mendonca was abused by some Sunderland supporters as he left the pitch: "that wasn't very nice, I'm gutted it's come to this ... I'd just like to say sorry to all my mates in Sunderland".


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Post-match
Curbishley praised Mendonca: "he had four attempts in the game and scored three while the other was saved. What more can you ask?" Curbishley had avoided watching Gray's penalty, preferring instead to keep his head in his hands Talking about his penalty save, Ilić noted: "I hadn't made a save all game so I thought this would be a good time". Charlton held a civic reception at Woolwich Town Hall the day after the final, the players making the journey there from the valley on an open-top bus.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Post-match
Nick Varley, writing in The Guardian suggested that the final was "the best game played at Wembley in 30 years". The Irish Independent described the match as "one of Wembley's most astonishing games" and "a day of unimaginable drama". Roy Collins of The Guardian, described Charlton's victory as "the most splendid of triumphs after the most splendid of games". In scoring his 35th goal of the season, Phillips broke Sunderland's post-war season scoring record previously held by Brian Clough. Mendonca became the first player to score a hat-trick in a play-off final.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Post-match
After the match Phillips stated that he was staying with Sunderland despite their failure to secure promotion, explaining that "all this transfer talk is a lot of nonsense. Playing in front of 40,000 every week, the support is unbelievable". Quinn also stated that he was keen to resolve his contract negotiations to allow him to remain at the club. Phillips, who had been carrying a shin injury for seven months, and Clark who had a hernia problem, were to have operations over the summer.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Post-match
Curbishley's assistant Les Reed left the club after the penalty shootout win to join the Football Association as a technical director;  he had made the decision to leave before the final but delayed the announced. After the defeat, Sunderland's share price dropped from more than £5 to less than £4, with an estimated loss in value of around £10 million.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Post-match
Sunderland ended their following season as champions of the First Division, amassing a record 105 points, and were promoted to the 1999–2000 Premier League. The record stood until Reading finished the 2005–06 Football League Championship with 106 points. Reid described their performance during the season as reaching "a level no one would have dreamed possible" after their Wembley defeat. Charlton's next season saw them finish in eighteenth position, five points from safety, and relegated back to the First Division.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Legacy
Gray has since reflected that the penalty miss "stayed with [him] for as long as [he] wore a Sunderland shirt, which was 12-and-a-half years". In an interview for British radio station Talksport in 2018, he confirmed that he "really didn't want to take [it] ... [ he] just didn't want to be the person responsible for [Sunderland] losing such an important match. It wasn't a good penalty ... as soon as [he] hit it, [he] saw Sasa Ilić diving across to his left hand side. [ He] knew he'd saved it. It was the worst feeling in the world."


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Legacy
He has also noted that "that penalty miss was probably the defining moment of me becoming an adult ... it still hits you hard, even 20 years on". Curbishley later noted that Reid was the first person to enter the Sunderland changing room after the game and that he congratulated every player. In his 2017 autobiography,  Reid described the match as "so remarkable and an outcome so dramatic that it transcended football". He also suggested that his selection of younger, less experienced players was an issue: "Inexperience was a big thing in the game.


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Legacy
If you look at the back four I had out — Craddock, (Darren) Williams, (Darren) Holloway were all young players". Reid also spoked of how his team, and in particular Gray, had practised for a penalty shootout: "The irony is at the Stadium of Light practising pens, Micky Gray was drilling them in the top corner with an arrogance and aplomb. I said, 'Oh, it’s easy doing it here. Wait till it's Wembley and there’s 100,000 and you’ve got to do it.' As soon as I said it, I thought, 'Oh, no, no, please don't.' I shot myself in the foot".


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Legacy
Ilić played a further 26 times for Charlton before the club signed Dean Kiely. Before the shootout, Ilić recalled: "I had all my team-mates coming up to me saying, 'It’s all up to you.' I’m like, 'Guys, come on, it's up to everybody'". In a 2019 interview he explained "I found a 10p coin and kept flicking it to decide which way to go. That made me decide to go to my left – unfortunate for Michael Gray and great for us". The referee Wolstenholme later described it as the highlight of his officiating career. He noted that it "was probably the best game I ever refereed, not because of me personally but the game itself. It was perfect because nobody even mentioned me."


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Legacy
Miles Kent writing for the Bleacher Report in 2008 called it "Wembley's greatest game" and described the contest as "a tremendous thriller ... [ which] has etched itself into folklore as one of the classic matches in the rich history of English football". In 2009, Eurosport listed the match as 19th best association football match of all-time. In 2014, the English Football League listed it first in its "Top 10 Football League Play-Off Finals", noting that it was "arguably the most unforgettable Play-Off Final".


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Legacy
FourFourTwo's Merv Payne referred to the match as "the bonkers Wembley showdown that lives long in the memory",  while in 2019, the Evening Standard described the final as an "epic showdown" and that it would "forever be a part club folklore". The South London Press described Ilić's save and Mendonca's hat-trick as "iconic, indelible moments in Charlton Athletic’s history". In 2019, Rob Stevens of BBC Sport suggested that the match was "arguably the best play-off final in English Football League history". Mick Collins, writing in his 2003 history of Charlton Athletic, suggested: "if life is a series of peaks and troughs, for many Charlton fans, Monday, 25 May 1998, at about 6 p.m., marks the highest point".


1998 Football League First Division play-off Final, Legacy
Sunderland faced Charlton in the 2019 EFL League One play-off Final, with a goal in injury time securing the London club's promotion to the EFL Championship. It was the first time in the history of the play-offs that two teams would face each other in a final for a second time.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final
The 1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final was an association football match which was played on 24 May 1998 at Wembley Stadium, London, between Grimsby Town and Northampton Town. The top two teams of the 1997–98 Football League Second Division league, Watford and Bristol City, gained automatic promotion to the First Division, while those placed from third to sixth place in the table took part in play-offs. The winners of the play-off semi-finals competed for the final place for the 1998–99 season in the First Division. The losing semi-finalists were Bristol Rovers and Fulham who had been defeated by Northampton and Grimsby respectively.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final
The match was refereed by Terry Heilbron in front of a crowd of 62,988 spectators. After twenty minutes, Grimsby took the lead through Kevin Donovan who dribbled round the Northampton goalkeeper Andy Woodman, and struck the ball into the goal. In the second half, Jack Lester was fouled in the Northampton penalty area to win a penalty kick. Donovan's spot kick was saved by Woodman to keep the game at 1–0, which remained the score at the final whistle, to see Grimsby promoted to the First Division after a single season's absence.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final
Grimsby's next season finished with them in eleventh position in the First Division. Northampton ended their following season in 22nd place in the Second Division and were relegated to the Third Division for the 1999–2000 season.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Grimsby Town finished the regular 1997–98 season in third position in the Second Division, the third tier of the English football league system, one place and one point ahead of Northampton Town. Both therefore missed out on the two automatic places for promotion to the First Division and instead took part in the play-offs to determine the third promoted team. Grimsby finished thirteen points behind Bristol City (who were promoted in second place) and sixteen behind league winners Watford.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Northampton's opponents for their play-off semi-final were Bristol Rovers and the first match of the two-legged tie took place at the Memorial Ground in Bristol on 10 May 1998. Half an hour in, Peter Beadle scored with a penalty kick  after being fouled by Ian Sampson, to give the home side the lead. Frankie Bennett then headed in a corner from Gary Penrice to double Bristol Rovers' lead seven minutes later. Barry Hayles then made it 3–0 after dribbling past two defenders before scoring from inside the Northampton penalty area.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Route to the final
John Gayle scored for the visitors in the 74th minute and the match ended 3–1 to Bristol Rovers. The second leg was held three days later at Sixfields in Northampton. Carl Heggs put the home side ahead in the 34th minute after heading in Chris Freestone's pass back from John Frain's corner. Ian Clarkson then scored from a Heggs pass in the 61st minute to level the tie on aggregate. Bristol Rovers then pressed to regain the lead but Ray Warburton headed in James Hunt's corner to give Northampton a 3–0 lead in the match and a 4–3 aggregate victory to progress to the final.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Grimsby faced Fulham in their semi-final with the first leg being held at Craven Cottage in London on 9 May 1998. Fulham dominated the first half, but five minutes before half-time, they were reduced to ten men when Paul Moody was shown a straight red card for a foul on Mark Lever. While Grimsby were making a substitution to replace the injured Lever, Paul Peschisolido was fouled in the penalty area and Peter Beardsley converted the subsequent penalty to make it 1–0 to Fulham.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Route to the final
A mistake eight minutes into the second half from Wayne Collins allowed David Smith to equalise for Grimsby. No further goals were scored and the match ended 1–1. The second leg took place at Blundell Park near Grimsby four days later. After thirty minutes, Fulham were once again down to ten players after Peschisolido was sent off for a foul on Peter Handyside. The first half ended goalless, but with less than ten minutes of the game remaining, Kevin Donovan scored past Maik Taylor to give Grimsby a 1–0 victory and a 2–1 aggregate win.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Match, Background
This was Northampton Town's second appearance in a play-off final, having been promoted the previous season with a 1–0 victory against Swansea City in the fourth tier final. They had last played in the second tier of English football in the 1966–67 season. Grimsby Town had never featured in the play-offs and were aiming to return to the second tier after a single campaign in the third having been relegated in the 1996–97 season. They had also already played at Wembley Stadium, their first appearance ever at the national stadium, earlier in the season: they had defeated Bournemouth 2–1 with a golden goal in extra time of the final of the Football League Trophy.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Match, Background
In the matches between the sides during the regular season, both teams won their home games, with Grimsby winning 1–0 at Blundell Park in October 1997 and Northampton securing a 2–1 victory the following February at Sixfields. The top scorer for Grimsby during the regular season was Donovan with 19 goals (16 in the league, 1 in the FA Cup, 1 in the League Cup and 1 in the Football League Trophy) followed by Lee Nogan with 13 (8 in the league, 2 in the FA Cup, 1 in the League Cup and 2 in the Football League Trophy). David Seal led the scoring for Northampton with 14 goals during the season (12 in the league, 1 in the FA Cup and 1 in the League Cup) followed by Chris Freestone with 13 (11 in the league and 2 in the Football League Trophy).


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Match, Background
The referee for the match, which was broadcast live in the United Kingdom on Sky Sports, was Terry Heilbron. According to the BBC, Grimsby were favourites to gain promotion. Grimsby played in a 4–4–2 formation while Northampton adopted 3–5–2. Roy Hunter and Sean Parrish were long-term injuries for Northampton but otherwise, their manager Ian Atkins had a full-strength squad.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Match, Summary
The match kicked off around 3 p.m. on 24 May 1998 at Wembley Stadium in front of a crowd of 62,988. After twenty minutes, Grimsby took the lead through Donovan: he received a pass from Wayne Burnett, dribbled round the Northampton goalkeeper Andy Woodman, and struck the ball into the goal. Three minutes later, Jack Lester's shot went wide of the Northampton goal. Freestone's missed chance was Northampton's best opportunity to score of the half. According to Trevor Haylett, writing in The Guardian, Donovan's goal was "the only highlight of a dreadfully dull first half."


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Match, Summary
Northampton started the second half the stronger of the teams missing two chances in as many minutes. Soon after the hour mark, Donovan misjudged a backpass and Freestone took possession of the ball before rounding Aidan Davison, the Grimsby goalkeeper, but missed from a tight angle. In the 78th minute, Lester was fouled in the Northampton penalty area to win a penalty. Donovan's spot kick was saved by Woodman to keep the game at 1–0. Five minute later, Paul Groves hit the Northampton crossbar but with no change the score, the match ended 1–0 and Grimsby were promoted to the First Division after a single season's absence.


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Post-match
Despite the victory, Alan Buckley, the Grimsby manager, was not an aficionado of the post-season decider, saying "Anybody who says they enjoy play-offs aren't football managers." The Northampton manager Atkins said he believed that some of the match's pivotal decisions had not favoured his side: "If you get a decision against you in these games it can kill you."


1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final, Post-match
Grimsby's next season finished with them in eleventh position in the First Division. Northampton ended their following season in 22nd place in the Second Division and were relegated to the Third Division for the 1999–2000 season.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final
The 1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final was an association football match which was played on 22 May 1998 at Wembley Stadium, London, between Colchester United and Torquay United to determine the fourth and final team to gain promotion from the Football League Third Division to the Second Division for the 1998–99 season. The top three teams of the 1997–98 Football League Third Division, Notts County, Macclesfield Town and Lincoln City, gained automatic promotion to the Second Division, while the teams placed from fourth to seventh place in the table took part in the play-offs. The losing semi-finalists were Scarborough and Barnet.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final
The referee for the match was Mick Fletcher. It was the first play-off final to feature two brothers: Neil and David Gregory both featured for Colchester United. The game had been brought forward by a day to accommodate a friendly between England and Saudi Arabia. As such, the final kicked off around 7.45 p.m. on Friday 22 May 1998 in front of 19,486 supporters, the lowest attendance ever at a play-off final. Torquay dominated the early stages of the game with Rodney Jack making a number of runs.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final
After 19 minutes, Andy McFarlane struck the ball into the net but the goal was disallowed for offside. Midway through the first half, the ball struck the arm of Jon Gittens and Fletcher awarded a penalty which David Gregory converted, sending the reserve Torquay goalkeeper Matt Gregg the wrong way. Despite chances for both sides, including a penalty appeal for Colchester in the second half, the match ended 1–0 with Colchester being promoted to the Second Division.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final
Torquay United's manager left the club the following season and they finished their following season in 20th position in the Third Division. Colchester United's next season saw them end in 18th place in the Second Division.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Colchester United finished the regular 1997–98 season in fourth place in the Football League Third Division, the third tier of the English football league system, one place ahead of Torquay United. Both therefore missed out on the three automatic places for promotion to the Second Division and instead took part in the play-offs to determine the fourth promoted team. Colchester United finished one point behind Lincoln City (who were promoted in third place), eight behind second-placed Macclesfield Town and twenty-five behind league winners Notts County. Torquay United ended the season level on points with Colchester United but with an inferior goal difference.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Colchester United faced Barnet in their play-off semi-final and the first match of the two-legged tie was held at Underhill in Chipping Barnet on 11 May 1998. After a goalless first half, Greg Heald scored past Carl Emberson in the Colchester goal three minutes after half-time to give Barnet the lead. In the 82nd minute, both Barnet's Sean Devine and Colchester's Guy Branston were shown a red card for violent conduct, and the match ended 1–0. The return leg was played five days later at Layer Road in Colchester.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Route to the final
David Gregory scored with a penalty on 12 minutes to put Colchester ahead after Lee Howarth was adjudged to have handled the ball. Barnet equalised after Warren Goodhind scored with a header from a Sam Stockley cross. Howarth was then sent off in the 59th minute for a professional foul on Gregory before David Greene headed Colchester into the lead from Paul Buckle's free kick, levelling the aggregate score and sending the game into extra time. Five minutes into the first period of additional time, Gregory scored his second goal of the game to send Colchester to the final with a 3–2 aggregate victory.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Torquay United's opponents in their play-off semi-final were Scarborough with the leg being played at the Athletic Ground in Scarborough on 10 May 1998. In the 17th minute, Gareth Williams missed a penalty for the home side before Rodney Jack put Torquay ahead three minutes later. Jason Rockett scored the equaliser five minutes before half-time but after the interval, goals from Jon Gittens and Andy McFarlane secured a 3–1 win for Torquay. The second leg of the semi-final took place six days later at Plainmoor in Torquay.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Route to the final
Jack scored a two-minute brace to give Torquay a 2–0 lead within seven minutes, before Rockett scored for Scarborough midway through the half. Williams was then sent off after receiving a second yellow card before Torquay extended their lead with goals from Steve McCall and Paul Gibbs. Liam Robinson was also sent off for Scarborough for serious foul play and the match ended 4–1 to Torquay, who advanced to the final with a 7–2 aggregate win.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Match, Background
Colchester United had participated in the play-offs on one previous occasion, in 1987, when they failed to progress past the semi-finals, losing on aggregate to Wolverhampton Wanderers. They had played in the fourth tier of English football after gaining promotion from non-League football, winning the Football Conference in 1992 ahead of Wycombe Wanderers on goal difference. Colchester had last played in the third tier in the 1980–81 season. They had played at Wembley Stadium the previous season when they lost to Carlisle United in the 1997 Football League Trophy Final in a penalty shoot-out.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Match, Background
Torquay United were making their fourth appearance in the play-offs, having gained promotion by winning the final on one occasion when they defeated Blackpool 5–4 over two legs in the 1988 Football League Fourth Division play-off Final. Torquay were relegated back to the fourth tier the following season and had played there since. In the matches between the sides during the regular season, the encounter at Plainmoor in August 1997 ended in a 1–1 draw while Colchester won the return game 1–0 at Layer Road the following January.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Match, Background
The referee for the match was Mick Fletcher. The match had been brought forward from the traditional Saturday afternoon fixture in order to accommodate the friendly between England and Saudi Arabia. Torquay's goalkeeper Ken Veysey was suspended for the final so 19-year-old Matt Gregg, who had last started a game on 31 January, was selected in his place. Colchester's Neil and David Gregory became the first brothers to appear in a play-off final together. Colchester adopted a 4–3–3 formation while Torquay played as a 3–5–2.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Match, Summary
The match kicked off around 7.45 p.m. on 22 May 1998 in front of 19,486 supporters. Torquay dominated the early stages of the game with Jack making a number of runs. After 19 minutes, McFarlane struck the ball into the net but the goal was disallowed for offside. Midway through the first half, Steve Forbes tried to lift the ball over Torquay's Gittens but the ball struck the defender's arm and the referee awarded a penalty. David Gregory struck the spot-kick into the Torquay goal off the left-hand goalpost having sent the Torquay goalkeeper Gregg the wrong way.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Match, Summary
Nine minutes later, Neil Gregory was unmarked in the Torquay penalty area but shot wide. Just before half-time, Gittens struck the ball over the bar from 3 yards (3 m) after a shot was blocked on the goal-line by Jamie Robinson. Soon after the interval Simon Betts struck a shot from around 25 yards (23 m) which went under Gregg's body and wide of the post. Forbes was then prevented from shooting when he was tackled after beating three defenders. Torquay began to dominate once again although Colchester were denied a penalty after Gibbs had brought down David Gregory.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Match, Summary
Torquay then missed numerous chances to score:  a strike from Gibbs was deflected wide, Gittens headed the ball over the bar and Jack shot wide. In the 71st minute, Emberson pushed Andy Gurney's shot round the post. Seven minutes later, Mark Sale's header from Joe Dunne's cross was straight at Gregg and the match ended 1–0 with Colchester being promoted to the Second Division.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Post-match
Steve Wignall, the winning manager, admitted that his club needed to strengthen in order to compete in the Second Division, suggesting that "the hard work starts here." He paid tribute to winning goalscorer David Gregory, noting that he was "one of the unsung heroes ... he has done a tremendous job for the club and he's one of the players at the club who can cope quite easily with Second Division football." The Torquay manager Kevin Hodges left the club the following month to join Plymouth Argyle. The attendance of 19,486 was the lowest ever for a play-off final.


1998 Football League Third Division play-off Final, Post-match
Colchester United's next season saw them end in eighteenth place in the Second Division, three positions and two points above the relegation zone. Torquay United finished their following season in twentieth position in the Third Division, four places and five points above the relegation zone.


1998 Football League Trophy Final
The 1998 Football League Trophy Final (known as the Auto Windscreens Shields Trophy for sponsorship reasons) was the 15th final of the domestic football cup competition for teams from the Second and Third Division of the Football League. The match was played at Wembley on 19 April 1998, and was contested by Bournemouth and Grimsby Town. The match was won by Grimsby Town, with Wayne Burnett scoring the winning golden goal in the 2–1 victory during extra-time. The attendance was the largest for a sporting event in England that weekend.


1998 Football League Trophy Final
Grimsby's victory was the first of a Wembley double that season as later they went on to triumph in the 1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final.


1998 Football League Trophy Final, Background
Bournemouth and Grimsby entered the fixture in a similar positions with both clubs fighting for promotion from the Football League Second Division. Grimsby were 3rd trailing Watford and Bristol City where Bournemouth were outside the play-offs in 8th. Bournemouth were competing in their second Football League Trophy final having won the first ever tournament in 1984, Grimsby were competing in their first final and were playing at Wembley for the very first time.


1998 Football League play-offs
The Football League play-offs for the 1997–98 season were held in May 1998, with the finals taking place at the old Wembley Stadium in London. The play-off semi-finals were played over two legs and were contested by the teams who finish in 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th place in the Football League First Division and Football League Second Division and the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th placed teams in the Football League Third Division table. The winners of the semi-finals will go through to the finals, with the winner of the matches gaining promotion for the following season.


1998 Football League play-offs, Background
The Football League play-offs have been held every year since 1987. They take place for each division following the conclusion of the regular season and are contested by the four clubs finishing below the automatic promotion places.


1998 Football League play-offs, Background
In the First Division, Sunderland, who are aiming to return to the top flight after relegation last season, finished 1 point behind second placed Middlesbrough, who in turn finished 3 points behind champions Nottingham Forest, who returned to the top flight after being relegated last season. Charlton Athletic, who are aiming to return to the top flight after 8 years outside the top division, finished in fourth place in the table. Ipswich Town, who are aiming to return to the top flight after 3 seasons outside the top division, finished in fifth place.


1998 Football League play-offs, Background
Sheffield United, who are aiming to return to the top flight after a 4-year absence, finished 9 points behind Ipswich Town in sixth place. This means Sunderland and Sheffield United will play each other with Ipswich and Charlton playing each other just like in the 1987 playoffs only then Charlton were the First Division and Ipswich were in the Second Division.


1998 Fordham Rams football team
The 1998 Fordham Rams football team was an American football team that represented Fordham University during the 1998 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Fordham finished fifth in the Patriot League.


1998 Fordham Rams football team
In their first and only year under head coach Ken O'Keefe, the Rams compiled a 4–7 record. Cliff Moseley and Steve O'Hare were the team captains.


1998 Fordham Rams football team
The Rams were outscored 336 to 252. Their 2–4 conference record placed fifth in the seven-team Patriot League standings.


1998 Fordham Rams football team
Fordham played its home games at Jack Coffey Field on the university campus in The Bronx, in New York City.


1998 Formula Nippon Championship
The 1998 Formula Nippon Championship was scheduled over 10 rounds and  contested over 9 rounds. 14 different teams, 29 different drivers, 3 different chassis and only 1 engine competed. Each round saw a Special Stage after the original qualifying. The best six qualifiers had to compete in a separate session for the pole.


1998 Formula Nippon Championship, Teams and drivers
Masao Yamada passed away from a subarachnoid hemorrhage on 12 July, 1998.


1998 Formula Nippon Championship, Calendar
Race 7 no special stage held due to bad weather conditions


1998 Formula Nippon Championship, Calendar
(ss) indicate the winner of the special stage, who started from pole - (fq) indicate the original fastest qualifier. In all other races, the fastest qualifier was also the winner of the special stage.


1998 Formula One World Championship
The 1998 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 52nd season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1998 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 1998 Formula One World Championship for Constructors, which were contested concurrently over a sixteen-race series that commenced on 8 March and ended on 1 November. Finland's Mika Häkkinen won his first Drivers' Championship, and McLaren-Mercedes won the Constructors' Championship, the first for the McLaren team since 1991.


1998 Formula One World Championship
The season saw a large shuffling of the pecking order, with McLaren-Mercedes emerging as the fastest constructor. Häkkinen won four of the first six races to establish a clear lead in the Drivers' Championship, but a strong mid-season resurgence from Michael Schumacher and Ferrari, including five wins, put the German driver level on points with Häkkinen with two races remaining. Häkkinen then won the Luxembourg Grand Prix from Schumacher to take a four-point lead into the season finale in Japan.


1998 Formula One World Championship
There, Schumacher took pole position only to stall on the grid and then suffer a puncture, leaving Häkkinen to win the race and the championship. Even so, Häkkinen would have won on countback through more second places had Schumacher won the race assuming the Finn had finished second. Häkkinen's teammate David Coulthard finished third overall with Schumacher's teammate Eddie Irvine fourth, while McLaren's final margin over Ferrari in the Constructors' Championship was 23 points.


1998 Formula One World Championship
With the factory withdrawal of Renault and the departure of designer Adrian Newey to McLaren, the Williams team and Jacques Villeneuve were unable to defend their respective championships. Williams ultimately suffered their first winless season since 1988, though they still finished third in the Constructors' Championship. The Benetton team also failed to win a race in 1998, despite young Italian Giancarlo Fisichella showing promise.


1998 Formula One World Championship
Jordan, led by former champion Damon Hill, failed to score a point in the first half of the season, but a strong resurgence in the second half - including Hill taking the team's first F1 victory in wet conditions in Belgium with teammate Ralf Schumacher second - enabled them to finish fourth in the Constructors' Championship. 1998 was also the final season for the former champion Tyrrell team, following its sale by Ken Tyrrell to British American Tobacco.


1998 Formula One World Championship
As of 2020, this is the last Constructors' Championship for McLaren.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers
The following teams and drivers competed in the 1998 FIA Formula One World Championship.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes
At the end of 1997, Renault withdrew as a direct engine supplier from Formula One. As a result, the two teams running Renault engines were forced to source alternative suppliers. Williams opted to run engines supplied by Mecachrome, who were working with Renault to develop the most recent iteration of their RS9 engine rebadged with the Mecachrome name. Benetton sourced a similar rebadged Renault engine from Playlife. Neither Williams nor Benetton were competitive to the same level as in previous seasons. Renault themselves would invest in Benetton for 2000, before buying the team outright in 2002. They would not supply engines to other competing teams again until 2007. The Prost and Jordan teams swapped their engine suppliers from 1997: Prost now used Peugeot, whilst Jordan used Mugen-Honda.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes
The 1998 season brought about two significant technical changes to reduce cornering speeds and aid overtaking. The first was the reduction of the cars' track, from 2,000 mm (6 ft 7 in) to 1,800 mm (5 ft 11 in), making them much narrower than in 1997; a previous reduction in track occurred in 1993, when the cars were reduced from 2,150 mm (7 ft 1 in) to 2,000 mm (6 ft 7 in).


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes
The second change was the introduction of grooved tyres to replace slicks (the last time Formula One featured grooved dry tyres was in 1970): the front tyres had three grooves, with four on the rear tyres. Grooved tyres would remain in Formula One until the reintroduction of slicks in 2009. For 1998, both McLaren and Benetton switched from Goodyear to Bridgestone tyres, as the Japanese manufacturer expanded to work with six of the eleven teams in their second year competing in the sport. This would result in the two teams who became principal championship protagonists working with different tyre manufacturers. The two top teams from 1997, Williams and Ferrari, opted to retain Goodyear tyres.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes
The "I"-shaped cameras mounted on top of the engine covers, seen on selected cars from 1995 to 1997, were made mandatory for each car in 1998, and changed to a more aerodynamic "T"-shaped camera; this design has remained largely unchanged since.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes, Mid-season technical changes
"X wings", a pair of tall aerodynamic appendages mounted at the front of each sidepod and first seen on the Tyrrell 025 in 1997, were banned before the Spanish Grand Prix. The teams that used them in 1998 were Ferrari, Jordan, Prost, Sauber, and Tyrrell.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes, Driver changes
Gerhard Berger retired at the end of 1997 after fourteen years in F1, leaving a vacant seat at Benetton. The team also opted not to renew Jean Alesi's contract, so the Frenchman signed a two-year deal to join Johnny Herbert at Sauber. As their replacements, Benetton signed Giancarlo Fisichella from Jordan, and Alexander Wurz, who had substituted for Berger for three races (including one podium finish) in 1997 when his fellow Austrian was ill.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes, Driver changes
Jordan replaced Fisichella by signing 1996 World Champion Damon Hill from Arrows to partner Ralf Schumacher. To fill his seat, Arrows secured the services of Tyrrell's Mika Salo alongside Pedro Diniz. Tyrrell also parted ways with Jos Verstappen in the off-season, despite Ken Tyrrell wanting him to stay. However, new owners British American Tobacco preferred to hire Brazilian Ricardo Rosset, who had briefly raced for the now-defunct Lola team in 1997. They promoted test driver Toranosuke Takagi to fill the second seat. Verstappen returned to F1 midway through 1998 with Stewart, while Lola's other driver, Vincenzo Sospiri, instead found a home in the IndyCar Series.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes, Driver changes
Prost retained Olivier Panis, but dropped second driver Shinji Nakano and replaced him with Jarno Trulli. Trulli had started 1997 with Minardi but then substituted for Panis when he broke his leg at the Canadian Grand Prix. Meanwhile, Nakano joined Trulli's old team, Minardi, to replace his retiring countryman Ukyo Katayama. He was partnered by rookie Esteban Tuero, who was promoted from a testing role as he was preferred to the outgoing Tarso Marques. Marques would eventually return to F1 in 2001, also with Minardi.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes, Driver changes
Williams (Jacques Villeneuve and Heinz-Harald Frentzen), Ferrari (Michael Schumacher and Eddie Irvine), McLaren (David Coulthard and Mika Häkkinen) and Stewart (Rubens Barrichello and Jan Magnussen) all retained their 1997 driver line-ups.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Off-season changes, Driver changes, Mid-season driver changes
The only mid-season change was at Stewart. Jan Magnussen was dropped after the Canadian Grand Prix following a series of underwhelming performances (including crashing into and eliminating his teammate Rubens Barrichello on lap 1 at Imola) and replaced by Jos Verstappen, who had been out of a drive since leaving Tyrrell at the end of 1997.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Season summary
When the season commenced, it was immediately clear that McLaren had adapted to the new rule changes best, with their drivers locking out the front row of the grid at the opening race of the season in Australia, both more than half a second clear of 1994–95 world champion Michael Schumacher's Ferrari. Mika Häkkinen went on to take victory in controversial circumstances after teammate David Coulthard moved over to allow him to pass in the closing laps, honouring a gentlemen's agreement that the driver leading at the first corner would win the race. Coulthard went on to finish second.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Season summary
This result was repeated in Brazil, although once again controversy was not far away, this time off the track: a protest was raised about a controversial braking system on the McLaren which was suggested to allow the drivers to brake front and rear wheels independently, contravening the rules. McLaren agreed not to run the system, but remained dominant in the race. With Goodyear making steps forward before Argentina, Schumacher was able to take his first win of the season, with teammate Eddie Irvine in third. Häkkinen finished a distant second, but Coulthard only managed sixth after he was tipped into a spin early in the race by Schumacher.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Season summary
Coulthard bounced back in Imola by gaining pole position and winning the race, which would be his lone win of the season, ahead of Schumacher and Irvine. Häkkinen suffered his first retirement of the season due to a gearbox failure. The progress made by Goodyear enabled Ferrari to excel on these twisty circuits. In Spain, however, the fast corners favoured McLaren and again they raced away to another 1–2 finish led by Häkkinen. A further win for Häkkinen in Monaco gave him a seventeen-point lead over Coulthard with Schumacher a further five points behind.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Season summary
Schumacher fought back to win the next three races, while mistakes and mechanical failures cost both Häkkinen and Coulthard points. After the British Grand Prix, Schumacher had closed the gap to Häkkinen to just two points, while Coulthard was 26 points behind his teammate and looking unlikely to be able to fight for the championship. Consecutive wins in Austria and Germany for Häkkinen proved that McLaren still had the strongest car, but a strategic master stroke in Hungary allowed Schumacher to take the win (with Häkkinen only managing sixth) and close the championship gap to just seven points.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Season summary
The start of a typically rain-filled Belgian Grand Prix saw one of the worst accidents in Formula One history, with over half the cars on the grid crashing into each other after the first corner; four of those drivers were unable to take the restart almost an hour later due to lack of spare cars. An action-packed race saw Häkkinen spin out into retirement at the restart after colliding with the Sauber of Johnny Herbert. This allowed Schumacher to lead comfortably before crashing into Coulthard when trying to lap his McLaren. The path was then clear for 1996 world champion Damon Hill to take Jordan's first ever win, followed by teammate Ralf Schumacher in second.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Season summary
Michael Schumacher bounced back to take a surprise victory in Italy, having initially outraced Häkkinen, who ended up finishing only fourth after brake problems sent him into two spins. The championship was now level with two races to go, with the result also bringing Ferrari back into contention for the World Constructors' Championship, being just ten points behind. For the next race at the Nürburgring, Häkkinen managed to beat Schumacher in a straight fight.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Season summary
The season concluded in Japan, where Häkkinen won easily without any challenge from Schumacher, who stalled on the grid and retired from a blown tyre later in the race. This gave Häkkinen his first world championship and McLaren their eighth Constructors' Championship. Williams, 1997 Constructors' Champion, had a disappointing season overall, with only two podium finishes for reigning Drivers' Champion Jacques Villeneuve and one for Heinz-Harald Frentzen. However, in Japan they managed to secure third in the Constructors' Championship, ahead of Jordan and Benetton.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Results and standings, Scoring system
Points were awarded to the top six finishers in each race as follows:


1998 Formula One World Championship, Results and standings, World Drivers' Championship standings
† Driver did not finish the Grand Prix, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Results and standings, World Drivers' Championship standings
Championship points were awarded on a 10–6–4–3–2–1 basis for the first six places at each event.


1998 Formula One World Championship, Results and standings, World Constructors' Championship standings
Championship points were awarded on a 10–6–4–3–2–1 basis for the first six places at each event.


1998 Formula Shell Zoom Masters season
The 1998 Formula Shell Super Unleaded season was the 14th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).


1998 Formula Shell Zoom Masters season, Notable date
February 17:  Richie Ticzon attempted a desperation three-pointer and was fouled by Boars forward Noli Locsin. He sank all three free throws to give Shell an 86-85 overtime victory over Gordon's Gin for their first win of the season after losing their first four games in the All-Filipino Cup. Victor Pablo led the Zoom Masters valiant effort with 33 points, 13 in the fourth quarter.


1998 Formula Shell Zoom Masters season, Occurrences
Coach Chito Narvasa has filed a leave of absence with only four games left for the Zoom Masters in the All-Filipino Cup eliminations. Assistant coach Perry Ronquillo was named interim coach and led the team to three victories but failed to advance in the next round.


1998 Formula Shell Zoom Masters season, Occurrences
Shell's former coach Chito Narvasa has moved over to the Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs as their new coach beginning the Commissioner's Cup.


1998 Formula Shell Zoom Masters season, Occurrences
Bobby Parks played two games in the Commissioner's Cup before John Best on his third stint in the PBA takes over as the Zoom Masters' import.


1998 Formula Shell Zoom Masters season, Occurrences
Shell release Estong Ballesteros to the Pangasinan Presidents in the Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA) during the middle of the year. Shell was fined P50,000 for failing to inform the PBA office.