The WNBA will begin enforcing its prioritization clause for the 2023 season, but Las Vegas Aces signee Candace Parker is waiting to assess the viability of the new rule.

The prioritization clause requires players to prioritize the WNBA over international leagues for which they suit up in the offseason. The rule was part of the collective bargaining signed in 2020 but goes into effect for the first time this year.

If WNBA players with at least two years of experience do not report to their teams by May 1, they will be fined. If they miss the start of the regular season on May 19, they will be suspended for the year.

In 2024, the consequences will get even harsher. Players will be suspended for the whole season if they do not join their WNBA teams by May 1 or the start of training camp, whichever is later.

“I think it’s going to be next year where we’re really going to see if this is something that the league is going to be able to sustain,” Parker told Yahoo Sports. “I, myself, would have had a huge decision to make in my fifth year being 26 [or] 27 years old deciding whether or not to come back to play with the WNBA or go to Russia and make 10 to 20 times what I’m making in the WNBA.”

The 36-year-old forward played for several international teams throughout her career, including Russia’s UMMC Ekaterinburg, Turkey’s Fenerbahçe and two Chinese teams. In recent offseasons, though, she worked as an NBA broadcast analyst.

European teams could shift their contracts to allow players to return to the WNBA in time for the season. And the WNBA is increasing domestic opportunities for players. But paydays in international leagues often far outstrip WNBA salaries.

“In order to have that [prioritization] rule then, in what way are you supplementing the other seven months?” Parker told Yahoo Sports. “Because you still want to get better as an athlete and as a player. For me, basketball was my first love, so I want to compete. And if I can’t compete here during those months, then I want to go over there.

“And so I think this is going to be big next year, more so than this year, and is going to be a big test to see if this really can in fact work.”

Parker’s former Chicago Sky teammate Emma Meesseman, who is an unrestricted free agent this offseason, is “unlikely” to play in the WNBA in 2023, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. The 29-year-old Belgian forward is playing for Fenerbahçe this European season.

WNBA owners reportedly “wouldn’t budge” on the prioritization clause during CBA negotiations, newly retired Sue Bird told Yahoo Sports. Bird sees 2023 as a chance for the league to take “baby steps” with the rule.

“It’s like a soft opening, if you will,” she said. “I think it’s a little easier to come back to the WNBA season before the games start. It will be harder next year when players have to get back before training camp starts.”

European leagues working with the WNBA timetable would be a “best-case scenario” for players, Bird acknowledged. But as the 2023 season approaches, the true impact of the rule remains to be seen.

“So here we are, we’re about to find out and we’re about to see if it all works,” Bird said.

The Tour de France Femmes confirmed its course for 2026 this week, setting up next year's event as the longest iteration of the race in the women's tour history.

The 2026 course will run in nine stages starting in Lausanne, Switzerland, on August 1st and continuing through the finish line in Nice, France, on August 9th.

Cyclists will cover a total of 1,175 kilometers, with 18,795 meters of climbing.

The course will feature three flat stages and three hilly stages as well as two mountain stages and one individual time trial, with riders tackling Mont Ventoux — an iconic climb from the men's event — for the first time.

Though 2026 will only by the fifth edition of the modern Tour de France Femmes, the race will make its debut in a standalone time slot one full week after the men’s race ends, with recent record viewership fueling the move to separate the races rather than continue the previous tactic of scheduling the two events back-to-back.

"We no longer need men for the Tour de France Femmes to exist,"  said race director Marion Rousse at Thursday's course unveiling. "There's no need to have the men's race as a platform to launch the women's race. Now people are waiting to see us."

"People have embraced us," Rousse continued. "The new dates, separate to the men, prove it."

This weekend's slate of international soccer features more than one blockbuster matchup, as some of the summer's top performers, including England and Brazil, begin the long process of preparing for the 2027 World Cup.

Reigning UEFA Women's Euro champions England will be hosting 2025 Copa América Femenina winners Brazil at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester on Saturday, when the Lionesses officially kick off their four-game Homecoming Series to close out 2025 play.

The match between world No. 4 England and No. 7 Brazil will serve as the first of the series of friendlies that will span the final two international breaks of the year, with the Lionesses closing out the opening pair of games against No. 15 Australia on Tuesday.

Elsewhere, while England fans will be enjoying the team's victory lap after their second-straight Euro title, other top UEFA competition are honing in on 2025 Nations League play.

Behind a long-range goal from winger Klara Bühl, No. 5 Germany snagged a narrow 1-0 victory over No. 6 France on Friday morning, taking the lead in the pair's two-leg semifinal.

The second Nations League semifinal round kicks off at 2 PM ET on Friday, when No. 1 Spain faces No. 3 Sweden live on Prime.

How to watch England vs. Brazil this weekend

England takes on Brazil at 12:30 PM ET on Saturday, with live coverage streaming on Prime.

The Wings have found their next sideline leader, as multiple reports on Thursday linked longtime University of South Florida (USF) head coach Jose Fernandez to the open position in Dallas.

Fernandez is still finalizing his contract with the WNBA team, with the 53-year-old exiting USF having led the Bulls for 25 years, making 10 NCAA tournament appearances along the way.

Calling his impact "profound," USF athletics CEO Rob Higgins acknowledged that Fernandez is leaving for a WNBA position in a Thursday statement.

"While this is a bittersweet moment for our program, it is a well-deserved opportunity for Jose," said Higgins. "We are incredibly proud of him."

Replacing Chris Koclanes after one year, Fernandez will become the fifth Dallas head coach in seven seasons, with the Wings trying to build a title-contending roster around 2025 WNBA Draft overall No. 1 pick and reigning Rookie of the Year Paige Bueckers.

Fernandez will also be the third WNBA hiring out of the college ranks in the last two years, joining Atlanta Dream boss Karl Smesko (FGCU) and LA Sparks manager Lynne Roberts (Utah).

Hoping to improve on a 13th-place 2025 finish — and make the WNBA Playoffs for the first time since 2023 — Dallas could claim a second straight No. 1 draftee next year, with the Wings entering 2026 with the highest odds to snag the top pick in the league's draft lottery.

The WNBA league office and the Players Association (WNBPA) exchanged escalating public statements this week, as both sides dispute terms surrounding a key issue in the ongoing CBA negotiations: revenue sharing.

"When the players opted out [of their CBA] a year ago, they made it clear they wanted a salary system that values their labor and allows them to grow with the business they are very clearly driving," WNBPA executive director Terri Jackson told ESPN in a statement this week, citing the vast disparity in revenue sharing percentages between the WNBA and the NBA.

Jackson continued by claiming that the WNBA intends to "run out the clock" and double down on a model that "intentionally undervalues the players."

Days ago, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said publicly that "[Revenue] share isn't the right way to look at it," pushing instead for salary increases in "absolute numbers."

WNBA leadership, however, denied that their current offer to players omits all revenue sharing, with the league calling the WNBPA's claim "incorrect and surprising," while indicating that an uncapped revenue sharing model "directly tied to the league's performance" is on the table.

"It is frustrating and counterproductive for the union to be making misrepresentations about our proposals while also accusing the league of engaging in delay," the WNBA's statement continued. "That is simply not true."

With both parties not seeing eye to eye, a resolution before the October 31st CBA deadline appears unlikely, though a formal request for an extension on negotiations is not currently in the cards.