The NRL is on track for a record-breaking round of crowds as the competition prepares to kick off on Friday night.

Hot on the heels of an astonishing turn-out for the final weekend of trials, clubs are budgeting for massive crowds which could nudge the single round record of 185,051 set in 2007.

A dull summer of predictable cricket and the month-long lead-in provided by the All Stars clash have ticket sales going through the roof for the season openers.

Brisbane report less than 10,000 tickets left at 52,000-capacity Suncorp Stadium for Friday's clash with North Queensland, while the Parramatta-St George Illawarra clash at Parramatta is a virtual sell-out.

South Sydney are tipping around 25,000 for their traditional clash with the Sydney Roosters at ANZ Stadium, the only match in Sydney on Sunday.

The Bulldogs expect more than 20,000 at the same venue when they take on Newcastle on Saturday, while the Lote Tuqiri factor has the Wests Tigers hopeful of a big Monday night crowd at the Sydney Football Stadium for the match against Manly.

"We'd like to get 20-something ... if you took the midpoint and said 25 I guess that would be a crowd that we would be looking for," Tigers chief executive Stephen Humphreys told AAP on Monday.

"It's a clash that deserves that kind of crowd anyway, round one, two good strong Sydney clubs and then throw in Lote as a bit of a wildcard into that, that gives us some expectation of a crowd of around that."

Humphreys said the interest in Tuqiri's arrival back this week had already begun paying off the investment in the dual international.

"Primarily it's about what he can do for us on the field but there's no question that off the field he'll be a big plus for us in terms of interest, in terms of publicity and we're already seeing that in terms of membership sales and sponsorship sales," Humphreys said.

He said last year's crowd of 74,549 for the Parramatta versus Bulldogs preliminary final had raised expectations of what could be achieved in the NRL.

"Momentum and desperation tend to be the things that maximise crowds," Humphreys said.

"Round one's a bit different because it's all about expectation and pent-up demand and everyone wants the footy on.

"A crowd like what was achieved at that Eels-Bulldogs game I guess opens up your mind to the possibilities, no question, and raises the bar in terms of what we all want to achieve and hope to achieve."

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