| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 24 April 1996 – 16 November 1997 |
| Teams | 9 (from 1 confederation) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 72 |
| Goals scored | 184 (2.56 per match) |
| Attendance | 2,806,242 (38,976 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Iván Zamorano(12 goals) |
← 1994 2002 → | |
| Qualification for championships (CONMEBOL) |
|---|
Listed below are the dates and results for the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the South American zone (CONMEBOL). For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification.
A total of 10 CONMEBOL teams entered the competition. The South American zone was allocated 5 places (out of 32) in the final tournament. Brazil, the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 4 spots open for competition between 9 teams.
This was the first World Cup qualifying competition to involve all of the yet-unqualified teams in the confederation playing against each other home and away to decide places in the tournament, a format that was replicated for subsequent World Cup qualifying competitions between CONMEBOL members.