In March 2002, a purchase contract for the site was signed between the City of Frankfurt and the ECB. This formed the basis for the international urban planning and architectural design competition which was launched in November of that year. 2.
The phases of the competition  At the start of the competition, more than 300 candidates from 31 countries representing four continents submitted their applications. Of those, 80 architects - 70 “established” architects and 10 “emerging young” architects - were selected to participate in the first phase of the competition, although only 71 actually presented outline proposals for the New ECB Premises.