NEW YORK -- Years before Michael Sam was born, gay-rights activists Kate Kendell and Paul Guequierre were already die-hard National Football League fans. Authentic Shane Doan Jersey . Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, grew up in Ogden, Utah, far from any NFL city, and became a fan of the Los Angeles Rams because shes an Aries and liked their uniforms. For Guequierre, raised in Whitewater, Wisconsin, and now a spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign, it was a family affair. Treasured season tickets for the Green Bay Packers were acquired by his grandfather, passed on to his father, and now are his. The cover photo of his Facebook page shows the towering statue of a Packers wide receiver. For Kendell, Guequierre and other gay fans of the NFL, their passion for pro football was rewarded May 10 with a moment they describe as thrilling: the decision by the Rams -- now of St. Louis -- to make Sam the first openly gay player drafted by an NFL team. "I feel like my support for the NFL now doesnt have an asterisk come with it," Kendell said. "Its now truly Americas game." The milestone has made gay fans more enthusiastic and already is drawing newcomers into the fold. Many may become Rams fans or -- like Guequierre -- henceforth consider St. Louis "my second favourite team." The NFL says it hasnt done any marketing research to gauge the size of its gay and lesbian fan base. Gay sports fans surveyed by Outsports said pro football was their favourite sport by far. Outsports co-founder Cyd Zeigler said that Sam -- if he makes the Rams roster -- will further boost the NFLs popularity among gays. "People who have never liked football are buying Michael Sam jerseys," he said. "People who have never watched a game watched the draft." As of midweek, Sams Rams jersey was the No. 2 seller among rookies at NFLShop.com, trailing only Johnny Manziel, the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback drafted by the Cleveland Browns. Sam -- although drafted 249th out of 256 players -- also was among just 10 draftees selected by the league to be featured on special bronze and silver commemorative coins, according to NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy. Howard Bragman, a public relations expert who has been working with Sam, expects the NFL and advertisers to capitalize on fans excitement over Sams debut. "The first time he plays, youre going to have huge numbers watching," said Bragman, the vice chairman of Reputation.com. "The NFL is a business," Bragman added. "It understands very well that LGBT fans are passionate, they have good incomes, theyre concentrated in NFL cities." Sam already has done a nationally televised ad for Visa. "The tide has turned," Bragman said. "Martina Navratilova said she lost endorsements after she came out. Youll find that Michael will do very well." That doesnt mean the NFLs advertisers will shift their focus away from heterosexual young males, nor are sexy female cheerleader squads likely to disappear. But gay fans may be all the more at peace with such things. "We know who theyre marketing to with those ads," said Guequierre. "Most (gay) people I know are OK with that. We dont feel like were being left out." Now based in Washington, D.C., Guequierre, 36, tries to attend at least one Packers home game per year, and makes his tickets for the other games available to relatives and friends, including a lesbian couple who are devoted fans. Guequierre said gay fans, like gay athletes, increasingly feel less pressure to conceal their sexual orientation while at games. He recalled an incident at a Packers game a few years ago, when he stood up and vocally scolded a fan behind him who had called a Chicago Bears player a homophobic slur. "No one else gave me a hard time," Guequierre said. "The guy looked embarrassed. ... He came across as the bad guy." Guequierres passion for football extends to the playing field -- hes an avid competitor in the D.C. Gay Flag Football League, which has 20 teams and about 275 players. One of the main sponsors is Nellies Sports Bar, one of a wave of gay sports bars that have opened up in cities nationwide. Doug Schantz, co-owner of Nellies, says there are now 25 TVs in the bar, all tuned to sports, with pro baseball and the NFL neck-and-neck as the most popular. "With the Redskins, it doesnt matter if theyre bad or good," Schantz said. On the other side of the country, Kate Kendell has settled into San Francisco, and is a zealous 49ers fan -- though her girlhood love of the Rams is now rekindled. She has raised her 17-year-old son to share her football passions. "On Monday nights, we break with tradition of sitting around the table as family," Kendell said. "We all watch the game. I leave office early to make sure were there for kickoff." Kendell expressed delight that gay youths would now be able to grow up with openly gay sports stars as role models. "Many of my gay male friends are not sports fans -- not because of lack of interest, but because their earliest introduction to sports made them feel stigmatized and shamed," she said, evoking epithets such as "You throw like a girl." "While surely there will continue to be homophobic remarks, there is a sense of a corner being turned," she said. "What I feel more than anything is a sense of elation and joy, that the game I loved since I was a kid I can now embrace without reservations." Authentic Dale Hawerchuck Jersey . Under the deal, the Vikings will donate an undisclosed sum of money to five gay rights-related charities over the next five years. Kluwe said he wont receive any money as part of the settlement. "This will help a lot of people that really do need that help," Kluwe said. Authentic Jakob Chychrun Jersey . The 25-year-old Brazilian player has only made four Premier League appearances for United this season and underwent a medical test in Italy on Friday. http://www.cheapcoyotesjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-clayton-keller-jersey . The same cant be said of last Saturdays 2-2 draw at Olympic Stadium against a very weakened New York Red Bulls side and one which had three stalwarts in Henry, Cahill and Olave back home in Harrison, NJ.J.A. Happ wants to be like his teammates. The left-hander gets a chance to prolong a stretch of recently solid starting pitching for the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night, when they host the Tampa Bay Rays in game one of a three-game weekend series at Rogers Centre. Toronto has won five straight games and nine of 11, a stretch in which its starters have posted a 2.12 earned run average. During the five-game win streak, the Blue Jays starters have allowed four runs in 29 1/3 innings. Starters have thrown at least six innings in 17 straight games, which nears a record run of 19 consecutive games Toronto established in 1998. Happ has split two decisions over his last three starts, but took a 4-3 loss to Boston on Saturday after allowing four runs on seven hits and walking three. "Maybe I have to kind of rethink the game plan going on," Happ said. "You feel like youre executing, (but) not getting the results, (and) try to figure out whats going on. Well definitely take a look and see if we have to change something." Hes 2-1 in five career starts against the Rays, including a 2.13 ERA in two straight wins. He last met them in a relief capacity on July 12 and allowed two runs in two-thirds of an inning. The Blue Jays won three straight over Tampa at Tropicana Field last week and outscored the hosts, 16-6. Nathan Karns makes his Tampa Bay debut on the mound in place of Drew Smyly, who was shut down for the season after exceeding 150 innings. Karns lost his lone decision in three starts for Washington last season andd was 9-9 in 27 starts for the Rays Triple-A affiliate in Durham, N. Authentic Wayne Gretzky Jersey. C. in 2014. "Hes been a little bit back and forth," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "Theres been times hes been lights-out. Other times, maybe he doesnt survive the third or fourth inning." On Thursday in New York, Chris Young broke up Alex Cobbs no-hit bid in the eighth inning, then belted a walk-off three-run homer in the ninth to give the Yankees a dramatic 5-4 win over Tampa Bay. Youngs one-out shot into the left-field seats on a 97 mph fastball came after Rays closer Jake McGee (4-2) hit Chase Headley in the chin with a pitch and gave up a double to Ichiro Suzuki. An inning earlier, Young ended Cobbs bid after 7 1/3 innings with a double to right-center field. Yunel Escobar homered twice off New York starter Michael Pineda -- a three-run blast in the fourth inning and a solo shot in the seventh -- but the Rays blew a sparkling outing from their starter. On Wednesday in Toronto, Drew Hutchison tossed 6 1/3 strong innings and was backed with plenty of offensive support as the Blue Jays completed a three- game sweep of the Chicago Cubs with an 11-1 victory. Hutchison (10-11) surrendered just one run on four hits and a walk with 10 strikeouts to earn the win. "He was outstanding," Toronto catcher Dioner Navarro said. Edwin Encarnacion, Navarro and Danny Valencia each drove in two runs and Anthony Gose had two hits, an RBI and three runs scored for the Blue Jays. 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