Section 6: Scoring
6.1 Rally Scoring
Every rally results in a point, regardless of which team served. This replaced the previous sideout scoring system (where only the serving team could score) and was adopted to shorten match times and increase spectator appeal. The winning team of each rally also gains or retains serve.
6.2 Winning a Set
A set is won by the first team to reach 21 points (sets 1–2) or 15 points (set 3) with at least a 2-point lead. There is no point cap — a set can theoretically continue indefinitely until the 2-point margin is achieved (scores such as 28–26 occur periodically at the elite level).
6.3 Winning the Match
The team that wins 2 of 3 sets wins the match. Match scores of 2–0 or 2–1 are the only possible outcomes. For tournament seeding purposes, the number of sets won and point ratios may serve as tiebreakers in pool play.
6.4 Tournament Formats
Olympic beach volleyball uses pool play (groups of 4 teams) followed by single-elimination knockout rounds. FIVB Beach Pro Tour events may use modified double-elimination brackets or pool-to-bracket formats depending on the tier (Elite 16, Challenge, Futures). Qualification pathways are based on FIVB World Ranking points accumulated over a rolling 12-month period.