At this point, there is some marginal gay athlete that is thinking to himself, about the marketing opportunities if he comes out of the closet.
It won’t be a star athlete, they will feel like they have something to lose. But, some benchwarmer, who has very little endorsements and fighting for his job, will see the potential windfall of being the first current athlete to come out and say he is gay. The amount of press he would get would be monumental.
I don’t think it will be about helping the gay community, as much as helping that athlete’s pockets, but we will see. Magic Johnson’s son recently came out of the closet (even though many had known for years) and Magic says athletes should have the courage to do the same thing.