early/late in the game

idiom

: at an early/late time in a game or sport

She scored a goal early in the game.

—often used figuratively

It's too late in the game to change the date of the meeting.

She got into the computer industry early in the game.

Examples of early/late in the game in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The bizarre mix of world football and American football was once again clashing early in the game. —Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 20 June 2025

Fever guard Sophie Cunningham also got into the fray with a hard foul on Sheldon late in the game. —Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 19 June 2025

Chicago defeated the Green Bay Packers in the season finale -- Jordan Love was injured early in the game -- and lost to them by only one point in their first meeting. —Dj Siddiqi, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025

However, the offense stalled out in the fourth inning and added just a single run late in the game. —Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 31 May 2025