For the thousands filing into the stadium, last night's match with Tonga - in which the All Blacks kicked off their campaign with a 41-10 victory - was almost an afterthought to the occasion: a scarcely-believable Rugby World Cup at home.
The sea of black was broken up with the colours and fans of most competing countries.
On one corner, an impromptu crowd formed before a band and sang and danced to Bob Marley together.
Groups of Tongans dotted the streets, dressed in church clothes and the red and white that has dominated Auckland's suburbs of late.
As one group sang church songs, a rowdy group of Argentinians belted out "Vamas Pumas" as they passed.
Lesley Naidu, of Mt Roskill - who had no match ticket - summed it up when she said, "It's not about the rugby".
Inside, the opening ceremony had the 60,000 spectators enthralled - nothing of the sort has been seen in New Zealand before.
Sheets laid on the field formed a canvas for video projections, and the choreography between those, beating drums and performers had the crowd stunned at times.
In one instance, stylised moko-based projections shot out from a lone woman calling a karanga - somehow making an already powerful voice fill the stadium completely.
Through a series of "chapters", New Zealand and the tournament's story was told.
Starting with the Maori myth of the separation of earth and sky, the centrepiece was a spine-tingling haka amidst columns of fire.
But earlier transport problems in Auckland meant that not all who had tickets to the opening saw it. The transport system ground to a halt, stopping thousands of rugby fans from getting to the opening game of the Rugby World Cup on time.
As an estimated crowd of more than 100,000 people took to the streets to celebrate, authorities were forced to close parts of the city to traffic.
And in the middle of the chaos people were bashed, pedestrians were hit by a bus and children were separated from their parents.
Some rugby fans, disgusted with the poor performance of Auckland's trains, want compensation for rugby tickets they say they couldn't use.
Earlier in the day, a huge crowd had built up at "party central" on Queens Wharf, where the celebrations went off with a bang.
Thousands of people gathered on Quay St in Auckland's CBD to get to Queens Wharf, where Dave Dobbyn and the Finn Brothers were performing to celebrate the beginning of the Rugby World Cup.
The music then gave way to big screens broadcasting the opening ceremony, featuring Maori haka and dance, at Eden Park before the opening match between the All Blacks and Tonga.
The "surprise guest" of the ceremony was All Blacks great Jonah Lomu, who was greeted by a huge cheer.
Back at the entrance to Queens Wharf, police and security guards tried to hold back the crowds as they surged through the gates.
Many fans never made it inside after waiting hours on the street but the 12,000 lucky ones waved flags and cheered as they got through the gates.
- The New Zealand Herald/APNZ