The FFA poked at a tender wound this week, telling the Canberra Liberals they were still keen to explore possibilities about the capital's involvement in the 2023 women's World Cup.

So here we are, almost a month after a historic FIFA announcement, dissecting the claim and counterclaim of an offer that could have avoided the World Cup becoming an ACT political football.

The ACT government said it withdrew from the FFA's bid because of what Chief Minister Andrew Barr said was an "exorbitant" $1 million per game price tag.

FFA sources say there was a better offer on the table - a three-game package for a total of $1 million. A much cheaper and palatable deal for everyone involved.

The government denies knowledge of the deal and it appears the offer either never made it into the official paperwork or to the negotiating table when the FFA and government came together.

Which brings us to this week, with FFA boss James Johnson writing to the Liberals to tell them he was disappointed Canberra was not part of the bid and other options could be available.

Liberals leader Alistair Coe was on the front foot on Friday, saying the government had, pardon the pun, dropped the ball in the negotiating process and insulted women's sport.

It is true many in the women's sporting community were disappointed with Canberra's decision to withdraw from the World Cup proposal given officials have trumpeted the city as Australia's "women's sporting capital" over the years.

Many of them understood the reasoning when they saw the million-dollar pricetag, which Barr revealed when asked by media why the ACT was missing from World Cup hosting plans. Those same critics may rise again if it emerges there was a cheaper option available to the government.

It is also true shadow sports minister James Milligan questioned the government's decision to prioritise women's sporting facilities in 2018, describing it as "lunacy" and saying: "sport, by its nature, is inclusive, and implementing this message will make it divisive."

So rather getting caught in the political game of pre-election battles, Canberra's soccer fans need to look at the facts.

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There was limited interaction between the government and the FFA at the end of last year, after the government officially withdrew from the bidding process.

A letter from then FFA chief executive David Gallop said: "It is surprising that the ACT government does not wish to be part of such a global event nor have the opportunity to benefit from this level of exposure to all parts of the world.

"It is disappointing that no offer was put forward by the ACT government for FFA to consider whatsoever, even at a level below that which was requested."

The second sentence may be the key to the World Cup miscommunication. It indicates that perhaps the FFA was open to a negotiating process, rather than what was thought to be a $1 million per-game take it or leave it fee.

The government was interested in hosting up to six games if Australia was the sole host, or three games as part of the successful joint Australia-New Zealand bid.

Match fees were scaled in accordance with the different stages of the tournament. A semi-final, for example, would cost more than a group-stage contest between two lower-ranked nations.

It's hard to believe the government would have turned down a $1 million, three-game package given they spent $1.76 million for five women's Twenty20 cricket World Cup games earlier this year.

"We would have loved for the ACT and Canberra to be involved in the World Cup from a hosting perspective, however we respect the decision by the government," a FFA spokesperson said.

"The FFA engaged with the ACT government over many months in relation to its World Cup bid. During that period, a number of potential investment options were discussed, however ultimately the ACT government was unable to be put forward as a prospective host city for fixtures in the bid book."

The fate of Canberra's hosting rights will be determined by a yet-to-be-formed organising committee, which will work with FIFA to finalise venues and training facilities.

The most likely outcome is Canberra will be a training base. Election promises will have little or no bearing. The only way that will change is if the FFA drops its asking price. So what will it be - dollars or sense?