D.C. United could really use a Daddy Warbucks in its life. Five years ago the team was on the cusp of getting a shiny new stadium in what was supposed to be an up-and-coming development in the city.

But the team is as far away as it ever was from finding a new home in the District and ditching the confines of RFK. And with Baltimore lurking in the background, doing its best to woo the team, it might be time to consider other suitors.

Still, team President Kevin Payne recently discussed at least four sites with D.C. officials, according to the team spokesman. The Washington Post reported that two of those sites are likely Buzzards Point near Anacostia and a site in Northeast D.C., however both would require a major infrastructure investment. Translation: that's pretty tall order for a city already facing a $400 million budget deficit.

It's not that communities don't want the Major League Soccer team. It's just no one wants to pay for the cost of a new stadium. Enter Baltimore, which recently released an economic impact study designed to woo the team (the study was on building a soccer venue there). Over the last few years, Baltimore has been trying to build itself up as a great soccer town by hosting international exhibition games and getting included in the U.S. bid for the Fifa World Cup.

Luring D.C. United away would be a huge coup and perhaps revenge for losing the NBA's Baltimore Bullets to Washington way back when. Either way, D.C. United officials are — however reluctantly — giving Baltimore a good look as Payne said of D.C.: "There is a point at which you just say OK, they don't want us here."

Translation: D.C., put your money where your mouth is.