The EUR, which stands for "Esposizione Universale di Roma" ("Universal Exposition of Rome") was built by the Fascist Regime in the 1930's in the hopes of hosting a Universal Exposition, a goal which never materialized due to the outbreak of the Second World War (the original plan was to hold the exposition on the twentieth anniversary of the march on Rome, in 1942). The district is still run by an independent corporation which is the successor of the managing company of the Exposition, and the entity is to this day is majority-owned by the Italian Finance Ministry (with the City of Rome holding a minority stake).

The construction of the district originally envisioned as a space for the Universal Exposition was also a convenient way to stimulate to grandiose Fascist plan to construct infrastructure connecting Rome to the Sea (although the Fascists successfully oversaw the redevelopment of the town of Ostia, it never grew beyond a resort town. The construction of Fiumicino Airport near Ostia, the grandiose boulevards connecting Ostia to Rome, and the construction of the EUR halfway between the center of Rome and Ostia are a testament to the regime's attempts to develop Ostia into an industrial harbor).

The project was formidable; but remained a project. The Rome-Ostia axis did not develop into the new center of Rome as the fascists hoped. However, the buildings remain as pristine examples of fascist architecture, and are in use by the Italian government as ministerial offices.