The tournament was played on a knockout format, with 32 teams participating.

On 30 June 2016, a drawing of lots in Varna, Bulgaria, determined the team's pairing for each match.

After two legs, the team with the most result points advances to the next round.

In case the teams are tied after two legs, a Golden Set is played immediately at the completion of the second leg.

The Golden Set winner is the team that first obtains 15 points, provided that the points difference between the two teams is at least 2 points (thus, the Golden Set is similar to a tiebreak set in a normal match).