| 1997–1998 Heineken Cup | |
| Countries: |  France Ireland Italy |
| Tournament Format: | Round-robin and Knockout |
| Date: | October 1997 to 31 January 1998 |
| Teams: | 20 |
| Matches: | 70 |
| Attendance: | 462958 |
| Top Point Scorer: | Lee Jarvis (Cardiff) (134 points) |
| Top Try Scorer: | Kenny Logan (Wasps) (7 tries) |
| Venue: | Stade Lescure, Bordeaux |
| Attendance2: | 36,500 |
| Champions: | Bath |
| Count: | 1 |
| Runner-Up: | Brive |
| Previous Year: | 1996–97 |
| Previous Tournament: | 1996–97 Heineken Cup |
| Next Year: | 1998–99 |
| Next Tournament: | 1998–99 Heineken Cup |
The 1997–98 Heineken Cup was the third edition of the Heineken Cup European rugby union club competition. Competing professional club teams from France, Ireland, Italy, Wales, England and Scotland, were divided into five pools of four, in which teams played home and away matches against each other. The pool winners automatically qualified for the knock-out stages. The five runners-up and the best third placed team entered the play-offs, where they competed for the remaining three quarter final positions.
In the pool matches teams received
| Winner of each pool advances to quarter-final stage | ||
| Advance to quarter-final playoffs |
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toulouse | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 25 | 12 | 13 | 200 | 121 | 79 | 10 | |
| Leicester | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 14 | 2 | 163 | 117 | 46 | 8 | |
| Leinster | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 19 | −4 | 137 | 167 | −30 | 4 | |
| Milan | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 15 | 26 | −11 | 111 | 206 | −95 | 2 |
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wasps | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 12 | 19 | 243 | 104 | 139 | 12 | |
| Glasgow | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 15 | −1 | 132 | 167 | −35 | 6 | |
| Swansea | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 16 | −1 | 157 | 161 | −4 | 4 | |
| Ulster | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 23 | −17 | 95 | 195 | −100 | 2 |
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bath | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 141 | 119 | 22 | 10 | |
| Brive | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 13 | 11 | 210 | 146 | 64 | 9 | |
| Pontypridd | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 13 | 4 | 154 | 147 | 7 | 5 | |
| Scottish Borders | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 14 | 29 | −15 | 129 | 222 | −93 | 0 |
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harlequins | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 21 | 12 | 9 | 198 | 141 | 57 | 8 | |
| Cardiff | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 15 | 2 | 184 | 146 | 38 | 8 | |
| Bourgoin | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 14 | 21 | −7 | 141 | 180 | −39 | 4 | |
| Munster | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 11 | −4 | 93 | 149 | −56 | 4 |
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pau | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 27 | 8 | 19 | 203 | 89 | 114 | 8 | |
| Llanelli | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 18 | −3 | 144 | 142 | 2 | 8 | |
| Benetton Treviso | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 18 | 19 | −1 | 146 | 162 | −16 | 4 | |
| Caledonia | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 23 | −15 | 89 | 189 | −100 | 4 |
| Seed | Pool Winners | Pts | TF | +/− |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | London Wasps | 12 | 31 | +139 |
| 2 | Toulouse | 10 | 25 | +79 |
| 3 | Bath | 10 | 12 | +22 |
| 4 | Pau | 8 | 27 | +114 |
| 5 | Harlequins | 8 | 21 | +57 |
| Seed | Pool Runners-up (and best third place) | Pts | TF | +/− |
| 6 | Brive | 9 | 24 | +64 |
| 7 | Cardiff | 8 | 17 | +38 |
| 8 | Leicester Tigers | 8 | 16 | +46 |
| 9 | Llanelli | 8 | 15 | +2 |
| 10 | Glasgow | 6 | 14 | −35 |
| 11 | Pontypridd | 5 | 17 | +7 |
Brive advance to final on try count (two tries to one)
See main article: 1998 Heineken Cup Final.