The 1998 New England Revolution season was the third season for the New England Revolution both as a club and in Major League Soccer (MLS). As the club did not participate in the 1998 U.S. Open Cup, and did not qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs, they participated only in the MLS regular season.
Summary
After qualifying for the playoffs for the first time in club history in 1997, the Revolution entered the season with a "vastly improved" roster preparing for 1998; adding Richard Goulooze from SC Cambuur, U.S. international Janusz Michallik, and then completing the first three-team trade in league history to land 1997 MLS All-star and El Salvadorian international striker Raul Diaz Arce from D.C. United (infuriating D.C. United fans in the process). The move would also see original league-allocation see Alexi Lalas depart the club.
Regardless of these moves, the Revolution struggled through much of the season; losing their first three matches out of the gate, and recording a 9-match winless streak throughout the months of May and June. Additionally contributing to on-field issues was the absence of head coach Thomas Rongen, and players Joe-Max Moore and Mike Burns, who all missed substantial time at the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Following heavy defeats to the Columbus Crew (6-1) and LA Galaxy (5-1) Thomas Rongen was fired on August 24. When asked about his struggles in New England, Rongen referenced "cancers" in the locker room that undermined team performance in 1998, and stated "a lot of things happened behind the scenes that I didn't know about until it was too late," adding that "there were different factions where players didn't know who to trust anymore. Walter Zenga would take over as Revolution manager for the remainder of the season, concluding with a 3-3 to record down the stretch.
Transfers Transfers In
New England Revolution – 1998 Transfers In Date Name Fee Position Previous club January 26, 1998 Janusz Michallik ??? DEF Columbus Crew January 26, 1998 Richard Goulooze Undisclosed DEF SC Cambuur February 3, 1998 Carlos Rocha Undisclosed FW Rhode Island Stingrays February 5, 1998 Raul Diaz Arce Trade FW D.C. United February 23, 1998 Edwin Gorter Undisclosed MF NAC Breda February 25, 1998 Jamar Beasley League Allocation FW MLS Project 40 February 26, 1998 David Nakhid Undisclosed MF Al Ansar FC March 24, 1998 Ian Feuer Undisclosed GK Luton Town F.C. April 8, 1998 Jair Undisclosed MF PFC CSKA Sofia May 21, 1998 Manny Motajo "Signed" DF Jacksonville Cyclones May 21, 1998 Tom McLaughlin 1998 MLS College Draft FW Harvard Crimson May 26, 1998 Oscar Pareja League Allocation MF Deportivo Cali August 15, 1998 Damian Trade FW Dallas Burn November 2, 1998 Shawn Medved MLS Waiver Draft MF San Jose Clash November 2, 1998 Kris Kelderman MLS Waiver Draft MF Miami Fusion
Draft results College draft
On January 31, 1998, the Revolution drafted Johnny Torres, Jesse Van Saun, Kevin Coye, and Tom McLaughlin in the 1998 MLS College Draft.
New England Revolution – 1998 MLS College Draft Round Overall Name Position Previous club 1 5 Johnny Torres M Creighton University 2 17 Jesse Van Saun M St. John's University 3 29 Kevin Coye D UCLA 3 36 Tom McLaughlin F Harvard University
Supplemental draft
On February 1, 1998, the Revolution drafted Dahir Mohammed, Doug Neely, and Dave Salzwedel in the MLS Supplemental Draft.
Additionally, the Dallas Burn drafted Revolution player Darren Sawatzky in the 3rd round as the 34th overall pick.
New England Revolution – 1998 MLS Supplemental Draft Round Overall Name Position Previous club 1 5 Dahir Mohammed D C.W. Post College, Long Island Rough Riders 2 17 Doug Neely M Chapman University, Anaheim Splash 3 29 Dave Salzwedel GK Cal Lutheran, San Jose Clash
Transfers Out
New England Revolution – 1998 Transfers Out Date Name Left Via Position Destination Club January 15, 1998 Walter Zenga Retirement GK N/A February 5, 1998 Alexi Lalas Trade DF NY/NJ MetroStars February 17, 1998 Steve Klein Waived FW Nashville Metros February 17, 1998 Dave Salzwedel Released GK N/A May 28, 1998 Rob Jachym Released FW Worcester Wildfire June 3, 1998 Evans Wise Waived MF Tampa Bay Mutiny June 8, 1998 Kevin Coye Waived DF Orange County Zodiac June 29, 1998 Tom McLaughlin Waived FW Worcester Wildfire August 15, 1998 Oscar Pareja Trade MF Dallas Burn October 31, 1998 Janusz Michallik Waived DF N/A October 31, 1998 Dahir Mohammed Waived DF Staten Island Vipers October 31, 1998 David Nakhid Waived MF Malmö FF
Club Team management
3. On August 24, 1998 The Revolution announced the resignation of head coach Thomas Rongen, as well as assistant coaches Renato Capobianco and Richard Williams. The same day, The Revolution named Walter Zenga head coach, and Sid Mazzola assistant coach.
Roster
Adapted from 2024 New England Revolution Media Guide (pg. 309)
Honors
Adopted from 2024 Revolution Media Guide (pg. 324 - 328)
New England Revolution – 1998 League and Team Awards Award Recipient(s) MLS All-Stars Mike Burns, Raul Diaz Arce Revolution Most Valuable Player Joe-Max Moore Revolution Defender of the Year Mike Burns Revolution Scoring Champion Raul Diaz Arce
New England Revolution – 1998 Statistical Leaders Category Recipient(s) Figures Games played Raul Diaz Arce 32 Games Started Raul Diaz Arce 32 Minutes played Raul Diaz Arce 2,878 Goals scored Raul Diaz Arce 18 Assists Joe-Max Moore 15 Shots Raul Diaz Arce 90 Shots on Goal Raul Diaz Arce 51
Competitive Major League Soccer
Conference standings
Overall standings
Non-competitive
Facing financial difficulties ($100 million in debt) S.L. Benfica embarked on a U.S. tour in 1998. As part of this tour, Benfica played a friendly against the Revolution on June 11, 1998. It was Benfica's first match at Foxboro Stadium since 1972. The match marked Oscar Pareja's Revolution debut, and outdrew several 1998 World Cup matches.
MLS Regular season
Miscellany As of 2025, the Revolution have finished at the bottom of the Eastern Conference Table on three occasions (1996, 1998, and 2011) but the 1998 season is the only season in which they have finished at the foot of the MLS table, thus winning the MLS Wooden Spoon. Despite poor on-field results, the Revolution had the second-highest attendance in Major League Soccer in 1998 (19,188), a figure down slightly from their league-leading mark of 21,298 in 1997. Raúl Díaz Arce's 18 goals (T3-highest in the league) was the most a Revolution player scored in a single season throughout the team's first three years of league play. That record would stand until it was broken by Taylor Twellman in 2002. Arce's single-season tally remains the 2nd highest in Revolution history, only matched by Lee Nguyen in 2014. The Revolution conceded a league-leading 4 hat-tricks in 1998.
Walter Zenga was officially named the league's first-ever player/coach on October 28, 1998.
References