Kobe Bryant's presence has been requested at a gay and lesbian basketball league in L.A. -- where league officials want the Lakers star to PROVE his support for the LGBT community by showing up for a game.

TMZ spoke with a rep for the Lambda League -- who tells TMZ, "We have seen Kobe's apology and hope that it's sincere. If he really wants to show us he means it he'll come to our next league game."