If you tune in at 2:30 EST, you are going to miss the first half. The match starts at 1:30 EST.
The first 30 mins is a pregame show on ESPN. From 2-2:30 there are the national anthems, final thoughts from the pregame show, a short spot about the stadium and South African apartheid, then the game starts at 2:30. At least that’s how the other games have gone.