| 1998 National Rugby League | |
|---|---|
| Duration | March 13 – September 27, 1998 |
| Teams | 20 |
| Premiers |  Brisbane (4th title) |
| Minor premiers | Brisbane (3rd title) |
| Matches played | 253 |
| Points scored | 10,131 |
| Average attendance | 11,612 |
| Attendance | 2,937,741 |
| Top points scorer(s) |  Ivan Cleary (284) |
| Dally M Medal |  Andrew Johns |
| Top try-scorer(s) | Darren Smith (23) |
The 1998 NRL season was the 91st season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the inaugural season of the newly formed National Rugby League (NRL). After the 1997 season, in which the Australian Rugby League and Super League organisations ran separate competitions parallel to each other, they joined to create a reunited competition in the NRL. The first professional rugby league club to be based in Victoria, the Melbourne Storm was introduced into the League, and with the closure of the Hunter Mariners, Western Reds and South Queensland Crushers, twenty teams competed for the premiership, which culminated in the 1998 NRL grand final between the Brisbane Broncos and Canterbury-Bankstown. It was also the final season for the Illawarra Steelers and the St. George Dragons as their own clubs prior to their merger into the St. George-Illawarra Dragons for the 1999 NRL season