One of the biggest events in the rugby league calendar is upon us, with the men's State of Origin series set to kick off in Sydney on Wednesday.

Queensland is heading into Game I defending a two-year streak against New South Wales in hostile territory.

The match will also mark Michael Maguire's first time coaching the Blues, having been announced as Brad Fittler's replacement in November last year.

Here's everything you need to know ahead of Game I.

When is the first State of Origin match?

The first match of the series is on Wednesday night. 

What time is kick-off?

• 8:05pm AEST: ACT, New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania, Victoria
• 7:35pm ACST: Northern Territory, South Australia
• 6:05pm AWST: Western Australia

Where is Game I?

Game I will be played at Stadium Australia in Sydney.

The Blues have won 20 of the 31 State of Origin matches played there. 

Queensland has won 10 and one game ended in a draw.

Where can I watch the State of Origin?

The State of Origin matches will be broadcast free-to-air on Channel 9 and streaming on 9Now.

You can listen to live coverage on ABC Radio via the ABC listen app.

ABC Sport will also be live blogging the match on the ABC News website.

Who is playing?

The official squads and team lists for Game I were announced early last week.

Maguire named six debutants for his squad, most notably passing up Origin veteran James Tedesco to give Panthers fullback Dylan Edwards a start.

But following a hamstring injury at the weekend, Edwards was ruled out of the game, making way for a fairytale return for Tedesco. 

Queensland's selection also caused a stir after Titans impact forward David Fifita was left out of Billy Slater's squad.  

Fifita played all three Origin games in 2023 but, according to Slater, isn't up to scratch this year.

"David created a really high standard for his footy last year. He just hasn't quite got to that standard this year," he said.

Manly teammates Daly Cherry-Evans and Jake Trbojevic will be the first duo from the same club to captain against each other in State of Origin since 2000.

When and where are the other matches?

• Game II: Wednesday, June 26, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
• Game III: Wednesday, July 17, at Brisbane's Lang Park

When is the Women's State of Origin?

It's a historic year for the women's series, which has been expanded to take place over three games.

• Game I: It's already happened. On May 16, NSW claimed victory in the first match against Queensland, notching a 10-point win over the defending champions
• Game II: This Thursday night in Newcastle
• Game III: Thursday, June 27, in Townsville

Here's who is playing in Game II: