Game 1 of the 2024 State of Origin series between the Queensland Maroons and NSW Blues is scheduled to kick off at 8:05pm AEST in Sydney tonight.

In recent years the actual kick-off has been reasonably close to the scheduled time. However, before that it was a long-running joke about how much the scheduled kick-off was dragged out, presumably to get more advertising spots in for Channel Nine before the game.

2023’s kick-offs were all quite close to the mark, beginning at 8:08pm, 8:07pm and 8:08pm respectively, only slightly behind the 8:05pm scheduled kickoff.

Either way, we can still have some fun by predicting when the kick-off will be.

The Welcome to Country and National Anthem usually take place around five minutes before kick-off, so we should know by then whether the match will actually begin on time.

Will Origin I kick off within five minutes of its schedule like in the last two years, or will we see it get dragged out longer than cinema commercials and trailers before the main event?

If you’re lucky enough to be going to the game, check out our full guide for when gates open and details on the curtain-raiser match.