The 19th season of the international television game showJeux sans frontières was held in the summer of 1988. Broadcasters from Belgium, France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain participated in the competition coordinated by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The different heats were hosted by some of the participant broadcasters in locations in their countries such as Misano Adriatico (Italy), Viana do Castelo (Portugal), Les Saisies (France), and Pozuelo de Alarcón (Spain). The grand final was held in Bellagio (Italy). The head international referee in charge of supervising the competition was Guido Pancaldi [it].[1]
For each heat, each broadcaster sent a mixed team of twelve members (six men and six women) from a city or town from its country that competed against each other in a series of games –funny physical games played in outlandish costumes, though none-the-less technically difficult– themed in the specific topic of the episode. After the eight heats, the most successful team from each country competed in the grand final. Each of the episodes was presented by the host broadcaster in its own language. Each of the participating broadcasters had their own presenters who did some on-site presentations for their audience and commented on the competition in their language. Due the complexity of the production, and that each broadcaster had its own personalized coverage, the episodes were filmed first and each broadcaster broadcast them at their convenience later.[2]
The season was won by the team from Madeira, Portugal, being the runner-ups the teams from Profondeville, Belgium, and Seville, Spain.[3]
Heat 3 was hosted by RTP at the Santa Luzia park in Viana do Castelo, Portugal, was themed about the history of the town, and was presented by Eládio Clímaco, Ivone Ferreira, and José Fialho Gouveia.
Heat 5 was hosted by RAI at the Autodromo Santa Monica in Misano Adriatico, Italy, was themed about Italian cinema, and was presented by Claudio Lippi with Anna Benni, Lucia Nalli, Maura Musi, Sabrina Picci, and Elisabetta Coraini.
Heat 7 was hosted by RTP at the Santa Luzia park in Viana do Castelo, Portugal, was themed about Portuguese navigators and explorations, and was presented by Eládio Clímaco, Ivone Ferreira, and José Fialho Gouveia.
Heat 8 was hosted by TVE at the grounds of Prado del Rey in Pozuelo de Alarcón, Spain, acting as if they were in Seville, was themed about the conquest of the New World, and was presented by Guillermo Summers, Ignacio Salas, and Carmen Otero.
The points scored by each team in the two heats they competed in were summed up, and the teams with the most points from each country advanced to the grand final:
The final round was hosted by RAI at the shores of Lake Como in Bellagio, Italy, was themed about cinema, and was presented by Claudio Lippi, with Anna Benni, Elisabetta Coraini, and Lucia Nalli.
