Group 2 consisted of five of the 50 teams entered into the European zone:[a]England,Georgia,Italy,Moldova, andPoland. These five teams competed on a home-and-away basis for two of the 15 spots inthe final tournament allocated to the European zone, with the group's winner and runner-up claiming those spots.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |  |  |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 2 | +13 | 19 | Qualification to1998 FIFA World Cup | — | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 4–0 | |
| 2 | Italy | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 1 | +10 | 18 | Advance tosecond round | 0–0 | — | 3–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | |
| 3 | Poland | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 12 | −2 | 10 | 0–2 | 0–0 | — | 4–1 | 2–1 | ||
| 4 | Georgia | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 9 | −2 | 10 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 3–0 | — | 2–0 | ||
| 5 | Moldova | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 21 | −19 | 0 | 0–3 | 1–3 | 0–3 | 0–1 | — |
| Georgia | 0–2 | England |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Sheringham 15'Ferdinand 37' |
| Poland | 2–1 | Moldova |
|---|---|---|
| Bałuszyński 4' K. Warzycha 77' (pen.) | Report | Cleşcenco 83' (pen.) |
| England | 2–0 | Georgia |
|---|---|---|
| Sheringham 42' Shearer 90+1' | Report |
| Poland | 0–2 | England |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Shearer 5' Sheringham 90' |
| Georgia | 2–0 | Moldova |
|---|---|---|
| S. Arveladze 27' Kinkladze 51' | Report |
| Moldova | 0–3 | Poland |
|---|---|---|
| Report (incorrect substitutions) Report | Juskowiak 23',56',60' |
There were 45 goals scored in 20 matches, for an average of 2.25 goals per match.
5 goals
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal