All games were played at the Olympic Hockey Centre in Deodoro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Great Britain won the gold medal for the first time after defeating defending champions the Netherlands 2–0 on a penalty shoot-out after a 3–3 draw.

[2] The medals for the tournament were presented by Barry Maister, New Zealand; Camiel Eurlings, Netherlands; and Nicole Hoevertsz, Aruba; members of the International Olympic Committee, and the gifts were presented by Pam Elgar and Marijke Fleuren, executive board members of the International Hockey Federation and Leandro Negre, president of the International Hockey Federation.

Following the completion of the round-robin stage, the top four teams from each group advance to the quarter-finals.

As per statistical convention in field hockey, matches decided in extra time are counted as wins and losses, while matches decided by penalty shoot-outs are counted as draws.