The women’s State of Origin series will get underway this week with Queensland attempting to defend the shield against New South Wales.
The Maroons toppled their rivals 2-1 last year which marked the first time the women’s game had hosted a three-match Origin series.
This year, the opener will be hosted at Suncorp Stadium with the clash once again acting as the precursor for NRL Magic Round.
NSW have undergone several changes since the historic 2024 edition with John Strange taking over from Kylie Hilder as coach, a new-look lineup listed and a team name alteration sparked by an A-League club.
MORE: Full results history between NSW Blues and Queensland Maroons in women's Origin
How Sydney FC forced NSW ‘Sky Blues’ name change for women's State of Origin side
New South Wales Rugby League has decided to strip away the moniker ‘Sky Blues’ from the women’s representative side ahead of the Origin opener.
The move comes in the wake of legal action threats from Aussie soccer club Sydney FC.
The A-League side trademarked the nickname a decade ago and have made repeated requests to NSWRL to drop the moniker for the women’s Origin team, according to CODE Sports.
Sydney FC argued that ‘Sky Blues’ is part of their intellectual property. NSWRL finally relented to the request, and the news was confirmed ahead of Game I.
The rep side will instead be called the NSW Blues women from now on, with the change implemented already across all of the team’s social media channels.
Your @Westpac NSW Blues Women's squad for Game I 🙌🏻
— NSW Blues Women (@nswbluesw) April 23, 2025
Full story: https://t.co/XhytZ9BS73#MadeForMore pic.twitter.com/VI8E8mqX0g
However, the nickname will still be sighted on their jerseys for the 2025 series.
This is due to the fact that the designs for the new kits were submitted in November last year before the change was implemented.
Therefore, ‘Sky Blues’ will still be visible within the side’s crest despite them no longer being referred to by the nickname.