The tournament started with a group stage, played in a round robin format. The winners and runners-up from each group advanced to the knockout stage, in which the teams then competed in single-elimination matches, beginning with the semi-finals and ending with the final. A third-place deciding match was also contested by the losing semi-finalists. The third and fourth placed nations from each group played in a series of consolation matches to decide fifth through eighth place.
Teams
A total of nine teams entered the competition, the winners of each of the respective domestic beach soccer leagues of the members of CONMEBOL, bar Ecuador who did not submit a team.
Association
Representatives
Rosario Central
Hamacas FC
Vasco da Gama
Deportes Iquique
Santa Marta
Association
Representatives
n/a
Náutico Puerta del Lago
Punta Hermosa
Malvin
Reales Miranda
Squads
Each team had to submit a squad of 12 players, including a minimum of two goalkeepers, at least 2 weeks before the start of the event.
Referees
Ten officials were appointed by CONMEBOL on 17 November 2016.
The draw to split the nine teams into two groups, one of five and one of four, took place on November 26 in Luque, Paraguay at the Auditorio de la Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol. The teams were seeded based on their national teams' final placement in the 2015 CONMEBOL Beach Soccer Championship. The representative team of the host nation, Brazil, were allocated to Group A.
Group stage
Each team earns three points for a win in regulation time, two points for a win in extra time, one point for a win in a penalty shoot-out, and no points for a defeat. The top two teams of each group advance to the semi-finals. The rankings of teams in each group are determined as follows : If two or more teams are equal on the basis of the above criterion, their rankings are determined as follows: All times were local, BRST
Group A
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Group B
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Consolation matches
The teams finishing in third and fourth place were knocked out of title-winning contention, receding to play in consolation matches to determine 5th through 8th place in the final standings.
5th–8th place semi-finals
Seventh place play-off
Fifth place play-off
Knockout stage
The group winners and runners-up progressed to the knockout stage to continue to compete for the title.
