UEFA U-21 Championship 1998
| Campionatul European de Fotbal sub 21 UEFA 1998 | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Host country |
 Romania
|
| Dates | 23 May – 31 May |
| Teams | (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 3 (in 1 host city) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |
 Spain (2nd title)
|
| Runners-up |
 Greece
|
| Third place |
 Norway
|
| Fourth place |
 Netherlands
|
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 12 |
| Goals scored | 22 (1.83 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |
Steffen Iversen (3 goals)
|
| Best player |
Francesc Arnau
|
The 1998 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, which spanned two years (1996–98), had 46 entrants. Before the quarter-finals stage, Romania were chosen as the hosts of the final stages, consisting of four matches in total.
The exclusion (for political reasons) of the team from Serbia and Montenegro, then known as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ended. Bosnia and Herzegovina was another former state of Yugoslavia who competed, for the first time. Spain won the competition for the second time.
The 46 national teams were divided into nine groups (eight groups of 5 + one group of 6). The records of the nine group winners were compared, and the eighth and ninth ranked teams played-off against each other for the eight quarter finals spot. One of the eight quarter-finalist were then chosen to host the remaining fixtures.
The qualifying stage for the 1998 UEFA European Under-21 Championship saw Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Russia, Spain and Sweden win their respective groups. Greece and England finished first in their group but were the two worst first placed group winners. Greece defeated England in a playoff to qualify for the tournament.
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