The FFA unveiled Macarthur-South West Sydney and the Western Melbourne Group as expansion winners on Thursday, sparking outrage in the capital's soccer community.

So the question is, almost 10 years after the FFA snubbed Canberra the first time, do we believe them this time? We don't mind copping bad news, but put us out of our misery rather than stringing us along, again.

Michael Caggiano and his Canberra bid team are the eternal optimists. They feel they've got the numbers, the finances, the support and the FFA's word Canberra is next, even after their compelling case to join the A-League was knocked back.

Apparently the Canberra population is too small and broadcasters think the city is only good for politics.

So FFA chairman Chris Nikou extended an olive branch to ease the pain. He said further expansion was on "the front-burner", singling out Canberra as an "attractive" opportunity.

But before we buy into that, what did the FFA say when they rejected Canberra in 2009 to instead put their money behind the Western Sydney Wanderers?

"I think the first thing to say is that we do believe Canberra is the right choice for the next A-League licence," former FFA boss Ben Buckley said on September 29, 2009.

"We do want to ultimately expand beyond 12 teams and Canberra is the obvious choice for the next licence."

And so we arrive at December 13, 2018. Here's Nikou's words: "In particular, we acknowledge on this occasion that a licence has not been granted to the Canberra region.

"We do, however, continue to view Canberra as an attractive opportunity for potential future expansion."

It's time for the FFA to put up or shut up. Most of Canberra's soccer community are fed up with the threats to fill grandstands for marquee games and being asked to tick boxes.

It's hard to shake the nagging thought the FFA just don't want to be in Canberra. When the Socceroos played at Canberra Stadium, they spent less than 24 hours in the city.

When the A-League came here, they sent the two worst teams in the competition. When The Canberra Times contacted A-League officials during the expansion process, they refused to return calls.

One prominent Canberra coach said: "They've [the FFA] done it again. They give us hope and then snatch it away."

But the reality is Canberra does have the desire for its own A-League team almost 20 years after the Canberra Cosmos went bust in the now defunct National Soccer League.

This time, An overseas-based sports consortium wants to be the financial backer, similar to the Melbourne City arrangement, the participation numbers are there and 8000 members signed up on hope alone.

Plenty has changed since the FFA's last empty promise. There's a new FFA board, a new Canberra bid team and an evolving perception of the capital.

But there are also worrying signs. Like the way Adelaide and Brisbane were calmly dropped into expansion talks at the press conference on Thursday, despite neither city having a short-listed bid this time.

It's believed the FFA wants to go from 12 to 14 teams when the Western Melbourne Group and Macarthur-South West Sydney join the competition in the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons, respectively.

The future of the Wellington Phoenix is unclear as they struggle to meet metrics set by the FFA to prove they are viable in the long term.

So what for Canberra? Being patient. The Ivan Slavich-led bid waited three years last time before their patience ran out. They held onto $400,000 of sponsorship and membership fees until Slavich decided enough was enough.

So what for the FFA? If they really see Canberra as an area of expansion, they must realise that talk is cheap. Don't tell the city it's a part of expansion plans, show the fans. Give a definite timeline. Take a punt on Caggiano and his investors and give Canberra a reason to take a punt on the A-League.

The only request from Canberra to FFA is this: Don't string us along. Again.