La Liga blocks without a VPN: set up XDP step by step

If websites and apps that have nothing to do with football stop loading whenever a match is on, let me show you the workaround from my video: XDP, a free DNS service that helps mitigate IP blocks without a VPN. We’ll set it up on your phone, computer or router, but we’ll also separate what it does from what we shouldn’t promise. (github.com)

One thing really gets on my nerves: having to fiddle with my connection just to open a perfectly ordinary website. I’ve already shown you a VPN-based alternative, but I like this approach precisely because you don’t need to set up a server or install another app.

That said, 30 seconds might be realistic if you know where the setting is on your phone. If you have to wrestle with your router’s admin panel, give yourself a bit longer. We can’t work miracles with the password that’s been stuck underneath the thing for ten years.

Why an IP block can take another website offline for you

To understand the problem, imagine several businesses sharing one address. If you block access to the entire building to stop people reaching one of them, you also shut out every other business’s customers.

Something similar happens with shared IP addresses. The XDP project explains that a single Cloudflare address can serve many sites: when an ISP blocks that IP, the disruption can affect services that weren’t the target. The problem isn’t necessarily with the website you’re trying to visit. (github.com)

That’s why switching to just any other DNS service isn’t the whole solution I’m showing you here. What makes XDP interesting is that it doesn’t just answer the query: it includes a mechanism for replacing certain blocked addresses. (github.com)

I’m not going to turn this into a legal explainer or promise when these blocks will disappear. Let’s focus on restoring access to legitimate services.

What XDP does and why it isn’t a VPN

DNS is a kind of address book that translates a website’s name into an IP address. You enter the domain; your device needs to know where to connect.

The idea behind XDP is simple: if the response contains an affected address, its system can replace it with an alternative. For Cloudflare, the project documents how it looks for a neighbouring IP within the same official range that isn’t listed as blocked. It doesn’t just pick a random IP. (github.com)

And here’s the distinction that matters to me: we’re changing DNS resolution, not setting up a tunnel to carry all your browsing traffic. XDP isn’t intended to replace a VPN’s features. (github.com)

If you want your traffic to exit through another country, check out my guide to setting up your own VPN on a budget. For this situation, I prefer to start with the option that needs the least setup.

My recommendation is to try it on just one device first. If it works and you’re happy with it, you can consider setting it up on your router. Let’s do this without messing up the whole house’s connection.

Before you set it up: choose Standard or AdBlock

XDP offers two options: Standard, with no ad filtering, and AdBlock, which filters ads, trackers and malicious domains. Both include the mechanism for dealing with blocks. These are their published addresses; it’s worth checking them on the official XDP website before copying them. (xdp.es)

For DNS over HTTPS, these are the published endpoints. (xdp.es)

AdBlock:
https://dns.xdp.es/dns-query

Standard:
https://lite.xdp.es/dns-query

I’d start with Standard if you just want to check whether it solves your problem. You can then try AdBlock separately: that way, you’ll know what you changed and which change helped.

If you’d rather manage your own lists and exceptions, my AdGuard Home tutorial covers another approach to filtering on your network.

How to set up XDP on Android

This is one of the quickest options. XDP’s guide uses the Private DNS setting; menu names may vary depending on the manufacturer. (xdp.es)

1. Open Settings.
2. Look for Network & internet, Connections or simply search for “Private DNS”.
3. Select Private DNS provider hostname.
4. Enter the hostname for your chosen option:

dns.xdp.es

Or, for Standard:

lite.xdp.es

5. Save the change and open the test page linked at the end.

This field takes a hostname, not an HTTPS address or an IP. Don’t paste the endpoint from the previous section here. (xdp.es)

How to set it up on Windows 11

On Windows, XDP’s published procedure combines the server address with a DNS over HTTPS template. Don’t stop at the first field. (xdp.es)

1. Go to Settings → Network & internet.
2. Open your Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection.
3. Find DNS server assignment, click Edit and select Manual.
4. Enable IPv4 and enter the following for AdBlock:

85.208.114.51

5. Under DNS encryption, select Encrypted only (DNS over HTTPS).
6. Enter this template:

https://dns.xdp.es/dns-query

7. Save and check the result.

If you prefer Standard, use its matching pair: 85.208.114.52 and https://lite.xdp.es/dns-query. Don’t mix one option’s IP with the other’s endpoint. (xdp.es)

On iPhone and Mac: use the official profile

For Apple devices, XDP provides configuration profiles. Download them from its website, not from a forwarded file someone dropped into a group chat. (xdp.es)

1. Open the official website and choose the option you want to use.
2. Download the Apple profile; XDP’s guide suggests using Safari.
3. On iPhone, go to Settings → Profile Downloaded.
4. Review the profile, tap Install and confirm with your passcode.
5. On Mac, open the downloaded profile and follow the system’s installation process.

The project’s website brings together the profiles and instructions. I’d rather point you there than leave you with a standalone file that might change later. (xdp.es)

Router or browser: decide how widely to apply the change

In the video, my favourite option was the router: set it up once and forget about it. But for an initial test, I still prefer a phone or computer.

If you decide to set it up on your router:

1. Write down or take a screenshot of the previous settings.
2. Open its admin panel. In the video, I use 192.168.1.1; if yours has a different address, use the one provided by the manufacturer or your ISP.
3. Find the DNS section.
4. Enter both addresses for your chosen option.
5. Save and test from a device connected to that network.

Changing the DNS IP addresses isn’t the same as enabling encrypted DNS. XDP distinguishes between conventional DNS and its DoH and DoT options; it also publishes specific instructions for MikroTik and Ubiquiti. (xdp.es)

Only want to try it in your browser? Its guide also explains how to enter XDP’s endpoint as a custom Secure DNS or DNS over HTTPS provider in Firefox, Chrome, Brave and Edge. That’s a more limited test than changing your whole network. (xdp.es)

Privacy: positive signs, not blind trust

In the video, I sounded fairly relaxed about this, but I want to make one distinction clear: a published policy isn’t the same as an independent audit.

XDP states that it doesn’t store DNS queries or IP addresses, and that its statistics are aggregate counters with no identifying information. It also publishes the project’s code on GitHub. Those are positive signs; I wouldn’t turn them into an absolute guarantee of security. (xdp.es)

I like being able to look at how it’s built and know what they say they store. That doesn’t mean I’ve audited every line or personally checked their infrastructure.

That’s why I’m suggesting a reversible test, not changing everything and forgetting about it forever.

Check that it works before calling it done

XDP has an official test page to check whether you’re using its service. That’s your next step after saving the settings. (xdp.es)

Run the check, then go back to the legitimate website that wasn’t working. Those are two separate questions: whether you’ve configured XDP and whether it solves your particular problem.

If something goes wrong, restore the values you noted down or switch back to automatic settings. And don’t apply the change to your router until you’ve properly tested it on one device.

I’d start with your phone right now: choose an option, configure DNS, run the test and try that page that wouldn’t load. If it works, you’ve got a concrete reason to take the next step.

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