For the first time in nearly 2,000 years, the ancient Roman Colosseum will host gladiator fights — albeit staged.

Under Wednesday's $US1.5 million ($2.3 million) sponsorship deal with Airbnb, up to 32 people are being offered the opportunity to step inside the historic arena in May to "face off against your fellow warriors".

The deal, which the short-term rental giant said aims to promote "a more conscious tourism", will fund the renewal of an education program on the history of the ancient amphitheatre.

But Rome's councillor for culture, Massimiliano Smeriglio, has criticised the plan, saying it encourages the "commodification" of culture.

"The news of the gladiatorial show inside the Colosseum leaves us perplexed," Mr Smeriglio said in a statement on social media.

The Colosseum is the largest amphitheatre constructed by the ancient Romans.

Built in the 1st century, it was the centre of popular entertainment, hosting hunts and gladiator games, until the 6th century.

Airbnb is allowing visitors to apply at no cost for one of two, three-hour experiences taking place after the Colosseum's closing time on May 7 and May 8. 

The "gladiators" will be selected through a lottery system but will have to arrange their own transportation and accommodation.

The initiative was organised in conjunction with the release of Ridley Scott's new film Gladiators II, which opened in Italy on Thursday.

According to Airbnb's reveal, the mock gladiator battles include suiting up in "historically accurate armour", travelling through the bowels of the Colosseum by torch light, and enjoying a spread of "victuals" like grapes, pomegranates and almonds.

Mr Smeriglio said he asked the chief executive officer of Airbnb and Rome's superintendent of Cultural Heritage to cancel these experiences and invest the funds into the conservation and restoration of the monument. 

"With a gesture of this type, the platform [Airbnb] would increasingly gain credibility as a friend of Rome, protecting its unique artistic heritage in the world without transforming it into a playground," he said.

Amid the pushback, the superintendent of the Colosseum Archaeological Park, Alfonsina Russo, defended the plan.

She told The Associated Press the sponsorship arrangement with Airbnb was one of many similar deals to help finance projects at the park.

The Italian fashion brand Tod's, for example, previously funded a multimillion renovation of the Roman monument, including replacing the locking system of arches with new gates and redoing the subterranean areas.

"The goal of the collaboration is to enhance the historical and cultural heritage of the Flavian Amphitheatre through immersive activities that fully respect the monument, based on rigorous historical research," Ms Russo said.

Housing activists, and some visitors to the monument, are skeptical about the value of the Airbnb arrangement, citing the role of short-term rental platforms in fuelling over-tourism and limiting affordable housing for residents in many cities.

Alberto Campailla, the coordinator of the Nonna Roma nonprofit organisation that focuses on housing and food for the poor, called the campaign with Airbnb "a disgrace", and a form of "touristification".

Airbnb and other platforms offering short-term rentals "are literally driving people out of not only the city centre, but also the outskirts and suburban neighbourhoods," Mr Campailla said.

Tourists from other European cities grappling with over-tourism also took issue with the deal.

"It seems to me that the purpose of the Colosseum today is to be a tourist attraction, but not to create an amusement park within it," said Jaime Montero, a tourist visiting from Madrid. 

Visiting from Naples, Salvatore Di Matteo saw the deal as "yet another takeover of the territory" by big companies.

"If they start to touch sacred monuments such as the Colosseum here in Rome, it is obviously something that should make us think and is, in any case, a bit worrying," he said.

ABC/AP