A potential staged combat between tech moguls Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg is now being considered in Italy, with an intriguing ancient Rome theme.

The latest development in this story reveals that Italy's culture minister engaged in discussions with Mr. Musk, exploring the possibility of hosting the spectacle as a charitable endeavor.

Since June, the billionaire heads of Tesla and Meta (previously Facebook) have been playfully spurring each other towards this fight. Should the event come to fruition, substantial contributions are anticipated for children's hospitals. Nevertheless, Mr. Zuckerberg has indicated that no specific date has been finalized thus far.

Describing his concept on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Mr. Musk disclosed conversations with Italy's prime minister and culture minister. "An extraordinary setting has been agreed upon," he noted. "The entire scene will exude the essence of ancient Rome, devoid of any modern elements."

However, the renowned Colosseum in Rome, which once hosted iconic Gladiator contests, has been dismissed as a venue option. Italy's Culture Minister, Gennaro Sangiuliano, conveyed that this "noble charitable" event would align with the nation's historical significance while simultaneously upholding its cultural legacy.

"I had a long and friendly conversation with Elon Musk, we talked about our shared passion for ancient Roman history," Mr. Sangiuliano said in a statement.

"We are thinking about how to organize a great charity and historical evocation event, respecting, and fully protecting the setting... It will not take place in Rome."

Mr Sangiuliano also said that a "substantial amount, many millions of euros" is expected to be donated to two Italian children's hospitals as a result of hosting the cage match.

Writing on Threads, the platform seen as a direct competitor to X, which he launched last month, Mark Zuckerberg said he has "been ready to fight since the day Elon challenged me", and if a date was ever agreed, "you'll hear it from me".

"Until then, please assume anything he says has not been agreed on."

Seeming to take a dig at the floated plans, Mr. Zuckerberg said that when he competes, he wants "to do it in a way that puts a spotlight on the elite athletes at the top of the game".

"You do that by working with professional (organizations) like the UFC or ONE [mixed martial arts organizations] to pull this off well and create a great card," he said.

Elon Musk, 52, and Mark Zuckerberg, 39 are two of the world's most high-profile technology billionaires.

The bizarre idea to fight each other started in June when Mr. Musk tweeted that he was "up for a cage fight" with Mr. Zuckerberg.

The Meta CEO, who already has mixed martial arts (MMA) training and has recently won jiu-jitsu tournaments, simply responded with "send me location".

I anticipate