UK's Royal Albert Hall could be flying under the banner of Emirates airline colours as the historic building opens its doors to commercial partners for the first time.

Airline officials when contacted, did not comment on the deal.

The venue, which was built in 1871, and has hosted events as diverse as pop concerts and sumo wrestling matches, announced last month it was seeking backers in a bid to boost revenues.

Under a package being discussed, the Gulf carrier will become a strategic sponsor and will be given a say in the type of entertainment hosted in future, something Hall officials said they are more than happy with.

Eleanor Gilry, Corporate Account Manager at the Royal Albert Hall, told Emirates Business: "It's a Dubai-based company in the airline industry with worldwide reach. We've started preliminary discussions but haven't met yet. The company wanted to be involved in the events side of the sponsorship.

"We're finding that it's more common that the major partners want to have more input in events; they don't just want to badge something. They want to be in the creative meetings, which is something we're open to."

If a sponsorship deal is signed, Emirates would find itself heavily involved in the creative process behind major events, such as rock and pop concerts, dance shows, operas and sporting matches.

Emirates airline is agressively increasing its presence in the UK with a recent conversion of a roundabout approaching Heathrow airport. The rounadbout, which once housed a Concorde, now shows a replica of Airbus A380 in Emirates colours.

Last year, the airline spent more than Dh1bn on its branding and advertising all over the world. Mike Simon, Emirates' senior vice-president corporate communications says that initially, it was a 90-10 ratio for advertising and sponsorships, but now its 50:50 between the two."

Commenting about the prospect of involving a Dubai-based corporate partner Gilry said: "This is quite a strategic position to take as a partner, but not necessarily one they will take, but it's an option open to them."

She added: "It's very early stages but we've certainly have a good deal of interest just from the initial press release we sent out. In the Gulf, it's only one company at this stage."

A deal with the Royal Albert Hall would form part of an aggressive drive by Emirates in recent years towards corporate sponsorship, particularly in the UK.

In 1999, it became one of the sponsors of the Cricket World Cup and in 2004 signed an historic Dh737 million ($200m) 15-year contract with Arsenal to sponsor the club's stadium in north London.

Emirates airline currently flies five times a day to London Heathrow and three times to London Gatwick from Dubai.

David Elliott, Chief Executive at the Royal Albert Hall, recently appointed PR firm Capitalize to run its tendering campaign and has said aspects of the hall including galleries, corridors and official tickets could also carry a sponsor's brand.

Rupert Hains, a spokesman at Capitalize, said there had been healthy interest from potential corporate sponsors in the Gulf since report of the hall's intentions was released.

"There's been some interest from the Gulf region and [The Royal Albert Hall's] business development team is currently in negotiations.

"About 10 days ago, they spoke directly to partners in the Gulf," Hains said without going further into detail.

Elliott told the BBC News website recently that for the right partner with the right values a gallery or corridor in the hall could be sponsored.

The Elgar Room concert space is being remodelled in the first half of next year and the hall may consider a named association with it.

"Certain spaces can be named. We would consider a name for the whole north entrance if it brought value to our brand," said Elliott.

He added the Royal Albert Hall would consider a partner for its youth and education programmes.

"We could also look at badging the tickets we sell with a partner's name – we sell millions of pounds worth of tickets a year," Elliott told the BBC. "Running a ticket office involves major funding, so that may be another partnership we would be interested in looking at."

But he added: "Are we about to sell the Royal Albert Hall name? Absolutely not," said Elliott. "We would be mad. We are a strong brand, the Royal Albert Hall, and that is what we will remain. Even for £1bn (Dh7.3bn), we would not accept a naming rights sponsor – our name is priceless."

The Royal Albert Hall partnership programme, being run by Capitalize PR, is inviting corporate brands to build an association with the Royal Albert Hall venue, which hosts portfolio of more than 350 music, sports, arts, charitable and corporate events each year.

"Although the Royal Albert Hall is a charity, it receives no public funding, yet we continue to deliver cutting-edge live event experiences in a competitive leisure and entertainment industry. Our new corporate plan will equip Royal Albert Hall partners with truly unique and bespoke benefits that draw on both the Hall's rich heritage and innovative programmes," Elliott told the BBC.

Alison Forth, Director of PR and Communications, Capitalize, said: "The hall is one of London's leading cultural landmarks with a long established history as a world-class and iconic venue, and the news of its partnership programme will generate huge interest within the corporate sponsorship sector."

The Royal Albert Hall said potential sponsor benefits included exclusive use of a private box for events, signage and branding in strategic locations around hall and naming rights to certain areas within the Royal Albert Hall.

The hall, which has hosted the Proms since 1941, is a Grade 1 listed building and entertains an audience of more than 1.2 million each year.

Emirates reportedly spends around £150 million (Dh1.1bn) a year on marketing, including advertising and public relations. In the last few years, sponsorship has grown from 10 per cent of the budget to 50 per cent.

Gulf rival Etihad Airways has also orchestrated a sponsorship coup in the UK, signing contracts with Chelsea FC and Harlequins over the past few years. Most recently Bahrain's Gulf Air struck a Dh51m three-year deal with UK's Queen's Park Rangers football club.