Kansas City Chiefs reveal special pre-game plans for Thursday’s 2024 season opener

If there is one thing the NFL and its teams do well, it’s pomp and circumstance.

The NFL Kickoff Game is Thursday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium as the Chiefs play host to the Baltimore Ravens. It will be a big event, and the Chiefs announced pre-game plans for Thursday.

Things will start with the “World’s Largest Tailgate” in the Truman Sports Complex with quirky games and celebrities. You can stream the event, which is why it’s billed as the biggest in the world.

The Chiefs plan a “Super Bowl LVIII ceremony and championship banner unveiling” before kickoff. Chairman/CEO Clark Hunt will take the field with Chiefs alumni and members of the Hunt family.

Actor and Big Slick co-host Rob Riggle will be the Drum Honoree, while gospel singer Tasha Cobbs Leonard will perform “Lift Every Voice.”

Singer/actress Coco Jones, the daughter of former NFL player Mike Jones, will perform the national anthem. Her brother, Mike Jones Jr., plays for the Atlanta Falcons. The Lenexa Fire Department will present the colors.

The pregame flyover will be done by a B-2 Stealth Bomber out of Whiteman Air Force Base’s 509th Bomb Squadron.

Here are the times to know for Thursday.

2:30 p.m.: Parking gates open

3 p.m.: Ford tailgate district opens

5 p.m.: All gates open at Arrowhead Stadium

5 p.m.: World’s Largest Tailgate livestream begins on www.ChiefsLive.com

6:20 p.m.: Start of team warm-ups

6:55 p.m.: “Lift Every Voice” performance

7:09 p.m.: Championship banner ceremony

7:12 p.m.: Chiefs introduced

7:14 p.m.: Ravens introduced

7:16 p.m.: Coin toss

7:18 p.m.: National anthem performance

7:22 p.m.: Kickoff