United captain Michelle Heyman revealed the team were fed up with being left in the dark almost exactly 12 months after the Australian Professional Leagues committed to a Canberra men's expansion licence.

The deal has been plagued by delays, but Canberra officials and the APL say a $20 million investment could be finalised as early as this week as they work to avoid major division between Canberra United players, Capital Football and the league's governing body.

Capital Football - the owners and operators of Canberra's foundation A-League Women team - have been caught in the crossfire of negotiations, unable to make long-term plans because it expects to no longer own the team when the men's deal is sealed.

But there appears to have been a breakdown in communication with United's players, who say they have been left in the dark and fear for their futures.

Heyman, 35, who made a remarkable Matildas comeback last month, voiced her concerns and confirmed rival clubs were lining up with offers to take advantage of the stalled situation in Canberra.

She said the players felt abandoned in the process and warned that some, including herself, were ready to walk if the uncertainty continued.

"I'll probably get in trouble for saying this, but I need things to start changing, because if I don't speak up then nothing is ever going to happen," Heyman told The Canberra Times.

"Our team is 16 years old and has a long [history], but if players are not guaranteed playing time [next season], then what's the point of staying?

"The regular season ends at the end of this month and we have no idea what's going on. It's more than frustrating for the players and coaching staff."

Capital Football is not associated with Canberra's A-League Men expansion bid and as a result it has been kept at arm's length in negotiations.

"The APL are further advancing with one party for the Canberra A-League Men licence and we are hoping to have news this week," an APL spokesperson said.

Capital Football chair Angelo Konstantinou sympathised with the players' need for clarity, but said officials had been regularly communicating with the women's high performance management.

"Capital Football has been in constant contact with the APL about the future of the men's licence and the women's team. Once we have any updates or more information we will communicate that with the team and key stakeholders," Konstantinou said.

The cost of running the women's team has caused tension within Canberra's football community for several years.

In September, Capital Football controversially axed the Canberra United Academy, a move that was slammed by players and led to the resignation of their former chief executive officer, Ivan Slavich.

Amid those developments and the delayed men's expansion bid, United's current stars desperately want a guarantee the A-League team has a future.

"We have no idea if Canberra United is even going to be around," Heyman said.

"Most of us girls would love to stay in Canberra, but if there's no Canberra United announcement within the next week or two, you're going to see players signing contracts with other teams.

"This club could disappear or it could not be very successful next season, which would ruin it. We have the best fans in the league, the most supporters that anyone gets to games, so it's super frustrating.

"I'm trying to be a leader for the team, so I try not have this as a distraction. But even for myself, I want to guarantee a contract for next year and if they're not going to give it to me within the next week or two then I'm going to have to look elsewhere."

Heyman said the APL were "meant to reach out two weeks ago and still haven't", and causing more uncertainty was the perceived lack of reassurance from Capital Football, with the veteran skipper saying she had still yet to meet the new chief executive officer appointed in early February, Samantha Farrow.

"She has never come to a training session yet, so I'm not sure what's going on there," Heyman said.

Heyman is Canberra's longest-serving player. She scored her 100th A-League goal earlier this season, and is leading the competition's golden boot race.

After playing her 150th game in a 1-1 draw against Western Sydney Wanderers at the weekend, Heyman hoped to remain with the club she joined more than a decade ago.

"It means the world to me to play so many games here. Canberra has been my team since day dot and it's created my entire career," she said.

"Let's just hope that we're staying around ... fingers crossed we can get a little bit more information behind what's happening with Canberra United."

A-Leagues commissioner Nick Garcia expressed his confidence in the Canberra men's bid two months ago amid concerns it was falling behind the other preferred expansion team in Auckland, with both teams slated to play in the 2024-25 season kicking off in October.

Canberra's expansion bid leader Michael Caggiano is continuing to work toward finalising a deal, and believed things would move fast when investors were announced.

In the meantime, V Sports, the holding company that owns English Premier League club Aston Villa, also emerged as a potential partial backer for the men's bid.

However, it is understood they will only come on board once the APL can finalise a major investor that will eventually also buy the intellectual property rights to United from Capital Football to merge the men's and women's teams into the same club.