The games were mainly played during winter, in direct contrast to the previous summer league.
The format proved to be both controversial and unpopular, and from 2000 a New Zealand National Soccer League returned.
It is unclear why Waterside Karori, who finished third in the Central League, were not promoted to the NISL.
These included one team from the central region (Nelson Suburbs) which had been participants in the 1998 National Summer Soccer League, and the teams which finished in the top six places in the Southern League in 1998 (Dunedin Technical, Christchurch Technical, Southland United, Northern Hearts, Woolston WMC, and Caversham).
[2] The composition of the league included two teams from Christchurch, two from Dunedin, and one each from Nelson, Timaru, Blenheim, and Invercargill.