The 'house full' sign is set to go up in both Brisbane and Melbourne in what shapes as a spectacular opening night to the NRL season.
Less than 1,000 tickets remain for the local derby between Brisbane and North Queensland at Suncorp Stadium, the Broncos' ground record of 49,571 set to be challenged.
Melbourne boss Brian Waldron is just as confident of having the more intimate Olympic Park packed to the rafters for the Storm's game against Wests Tigers, fans keen to see rival five-eighths Greg Inglis and Benji Marshall go head-to-head for the first time.
"The levels of ticket sales have been unprecedented for a Broncos' home game," Broncos chief executive Bruno Cullen said.
"We are telling fans that to make sure they gain entry to the match, it is highly advisable they pre-purchase a ticket tonight or tomorrow morning."
With the 50,000 barrier set to be broken on Friday night, it is possible Suncorp Stadium may attract more than 100,000 league fans over the weekend, with Gold Coast playing their inaugural NRL match against St George Illawarra on Sunday at Queensland's rugby league headquarters.
Waldron said the club had been inundated with requests for tickets from fans in Melbourne for this weekend's Formula One grand prix and while plenty of tickets remained available, he was predicting a large walk-up crowd.
"It's not a sellout yet but we're hopeful that by the time the game kicks off it will be a house full," Waldron said.
Both matches will be telecast live on free-to-air television, Queensland viewers to get the Broncos-Cowboys match and NSW and Victorian fans to see the Storm-Tigers clash
