The tower, which officially opens in the spring of 2003, was one of 350 buildings nominated for the award. More than 6,000 visitors to the Skyscrapers.com site voted for the Kingdom Centre.

Designed by the Ellerbe Becket/Omrania Consortium, the Kingdom Center already is a distinctive focal point in the skyline of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Prince Alwaleed, grandson of King Abdulaziz, the founder of Saudi Arabia, wanted the Kingdom Centre to be a globally recognized icon for Riyadh, just as the Eiffel Tower is a symbol for Paris. At 984 feet (300 meters), the Kingdome Centre is the same height as the Eiffel Tower.

To represent Saudi Arabia's role in the modern global economy, the Prince–very much involved in the design process–requested a simple, strong, monolithic, and symmetrical structure–a style more global than regional.

Ellerbe Becket/Omrania Consortium's design was chosen from among more than one hundred competing proposals submitted by some of the world's top architectural firms over a span of three years. Their design consists of a slim tube that rises out of an elliptical floor plan and ends in a parabolic curve and shallow arch. The building is clad entirely in silver, reflective glass, concrete, granite, and brushed aluminum, materials which intensify its monolithic appearance.

The mixed-use tower accommodates different facilities, including the Prince's business headquarters, a first-class hotel, the three-story Kingdom Mall, a wedding and conference center, rentable office space, a sports club, and luxury condominiums. To conform to Saudi customs and culture, a number of prayer rooms have been integrated into the layout, and one entire floor of the Kingdom Mall–reached by a separate entrance and elevator–is reserved for women only, where Islamic veils are not obligatory.

An innovator since its founding in 1909, Ellerbe Becket is a leader in architecture, engineering and the construction industry with office locations worldwide.