FIFA 98: Road to World Cup was the first FIFA game built around a dedicated FIFA World Cup mode.
Released ahead of the 1998 tournament in France, it included all 172 national teams that entered World Cup qualification. Players could guide a nation through qualification and then compete in a tournament structure based on the real event.
The game’s full title, FIFA: Road to World Cup 98, reflects its qualification-focused design. It also introduced official tournament presentation elements and featured every qualified team from the 1998 World Cup.
This should not be confused with later standalone World Cup editions, such as the 2002 FIFA World Cup game. FIFA 98 remained a regular annual FIFA release while strongly emphasizing the tournament.