Airbnb is attempting to kick off gladiator fights in Rome’s historic Colosseum after 2,000 years, but local lawmakers in the Italian city are not impressed.
In a press release on November 13, the vacation rental company said that 16 participants will be picked to fight in a mock battle in May 2025, dressed in gladiator garb. The event is happening because of a $1.5 million tie-up between Airbnb and the Colosseum Archaeological Park, per CNN.
Promotions for the event are kicking off in conjunction with the release of the new “Gladiator II” movie starring Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, and Denzel Washington. Tfilmvie is set to be released in the US on Friday.
A listing on Airbnb says that the event will be hosted by Lucius, the main character in the film directed by Ridley Scott.
“For centuries, the Roman Colosseum has been the stage for epic battles and legendary gladiators,” Airbnb said in its press release.
“Now, for the first time in nearly 2,000 years, the Colosseum returns to its original purpose as a venue for performances, inviting daring warriors to step foot inside the historic arena to forge their own paths and shape their destinies,” it added.
Airbnb said guests will not be allowed to spend the night in the Colosseum and will have to arrange their own travel in and out of Rome.
However, local lawmakers are not pleased.
Massimiliano Smeriglio, Rome’s councilor for culture, spoke out in opposition to the event, saying in an Instagram post on Monday that the event reflects the “hyper tourism of our cities which risk becoming Disneylands for the rich” and making the cities “lose their identity.”
“The Colosseum is a symbol of the thousand-year history of #Rome, its image must not be debased in the eyes of the world and it cannot become a playground,” Smeriglio wrote.
Enzo Foschi, a politician from the Democratic Party of Rome, accused Airbnb of “a publicity stunt” in a statement on Friday seen by CNN.
“We are not in Disneyland, we are in Rome. Every now and then someone seems to forget it,” Foschi wrote.
Several European cities have been protesting mass tourism amid rising rental costs, and Airbnb has been caught up in the wave of criticism.
Following a partial ban on short-term rentals in Barcelona in 2021, earlier this summer, the city announced it would aim to eliminate all of its approximately 10,000 registered short-term listings by 2028.
In July, locals in Spain took to the streets in Barcelona to protest mass tourism.
Portugal, meanwhile, suspended all new licenses for short-term rentals in early 2023. Amsterdam has also capped the number of nights hosts can rent out their homes to just 30 a year.
Smeriglio and representatives of Airbnb, the Colosseum Archaeological Park, and the Democratic Party of Rome didn’t respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, sent outside business hours.
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