So we're down to three. Touch wood.
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ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr said of the 11 Bruce sites they've looked at there were three clear favourites - with a shock new location the preference of those.
The old Canberra Raiders HQ, on the corner of Haydon Drive and Battye Street, has emerged as the preferred location.
The other two less-preferred options were the current site or its eastern carpark.
But Barr's all-but ruled out a redevelopment of the existing stadium because it would be too problematic to find temporary homes for the main tenants - the Raiders and the ACT Brumbies, and potentially a new A-League, when an owner gets announced in the coming weeks.
It's a saga that's been dragging on since at least 2009 as the rest of Australia has left Canberra behind when it comes to sporting facilities.
There's still some hope of a Civic Stadium, with both ACT senator David Pocock and ACT Opposition Leader Elizabeth Lee continuing to back it as their preferred site.
But, with the ACT election still eight months away, it's a distant fourth behind the other three with Barr committed to building in Bruce.
Only a change in government in October would seemingly bring a Civic Stadium back on the table.
Here's a look at the pros and cons of Barr's "Big Three" locations.
Old Raiders HQ
While it's the current frontrunner, the government's yet to do their technical due diligence on the site that was the home to the Raiders for many years.
Barr hoped to have a final decision on a location by the end of the year as they undertake their seventh stadium study in the past 15 years.
He said its proximity to the "public transport corridor" of Haydon Drive was a positive for the new site, with the potential for light rail to eventually go past there in 2050.
The land's owned by the ACT government via CIT, meaning they can do whatever they want with it - although NSWRL currently have a long-term lease to use it as a training and playing base.
There's also plenty of land around there to work with, with Barr also flagging the rest of the CIT Bruce campus for a facelift.
On the negative, there's no bars or restaurants in the vicinity - which has been a constant criticism of a Bruce site and also why Civic was so highly touted.
It'll also come as a big shock to the residents directly across Battye Street, who will wake up to find a stadium next door in 2033.
We're also not sure if it fits or whether any of the surrounding facilities would need to move as a result, with parking needing to be factored into any design.
The current site
Everyone knows where it is. That's about the extent of the pros with the cons making it the worst of the three contenders.
It would mean either a staged rebuild or a complete knockdown, which would result in either games being played on a building site with reduced capacity or both the Raiders and Brumbies having to find a new home for several years.
Barr thought Manuka Oval would be the likely venue for the duration of the redevelopment.
Just like the rest of Bruce, there's also no infrastructure around it - meaning there's nowhere to go for a drink or a meal before or after games.
Eastern carpark
Even though it's right next door to the existing stadium, it will at least feel new.
On the pro side, we know there's plenty of room to fit it there - given it was part of the original plans when a new stadium was first floated in 2009.
Part of that would also mean it could have access from Gungahlin Drive tied into the design.
On the flipside, as part of the AIS it's on federal government land, which would mean an extended approval process that would have to go through the National Capital Authority.
Given how long this stadium saga has been dragging on for the last thing we need is delays.
You'd also lose half the parking for the duration of the build.
Plus it's even further away from the Haydon Drive transport corridor - unless the future tram went up Gungahlin Drive.
But the biggest problem for all three sites? We're still nine years away from completion.