Forum Discussion

New Rookie

2 months ago

NHL26 Failed to find opponent

I am deployed and for some reason I cannot get matched up with an opponent in Online Vs. I tried CHEL and had the same issue. My other games are working for online play.

New Veteran

1 month ago

That message means you’ve been assigned a private IP address by the hotel’s network, which is causing a handshake issue with the game servers.

The 172.x.x.x range is reserved for internal networks. Here is a breakdown of what is likely going wrong:

1. Strict NAT Type

Hotels usually "hide" hundreds of guests behind a single public IP address. This creates a Strict NAT, which acts like a wall. Game servers often can't "see" your specific device through that wall, leading to connection drops or the inability to join matches.

2. Port Blocking

Hotel IT admins often block specific "ports" to save bandwidth or for security. While they allow standard web browsing, they might block the specific ports EA games need to communicate, making it impossible for the game to stay connected.

3. Double NAT

Because the hotel has its own internal routing (the 172 IP) before it even hits the actual internet, your data is being translated twice. This "Double NAT" often causes games to time out because the data takes too long or gets lost in the internal layers of the hotel's hardware.

What can you do?

As the forum staff mentioned, they can't change the hotel's hardware settings, but you have a few options:

Mobile Hotspot: If you have a decent data plan, using your phone as a hotspot is almost always better for gaming than hotel Wi-Fi. It gives you a much more "direct" connection to the internet.

Use a VPN: A VPN can sometimes bypass the hotel's port restrictions by "tunneling" your traffic. However, this might slightly increase your ping (lag).

Wired Connection: If the hotel room has an Ethernet port (LAN), try a cable. Sometimes the wired network has fewer restrictions than the guest Wi-Fi.

hootiehome

New Rookie

1 month ago

Thanks Fox. I have tried all of these.

Mobile hotspot allowed me to connect to an opponent once, but has stopped working for some reason. But the connection that one time was pretty slow anyway, and the game play was a bit laggy.
I do have a VPN with port forwading, but the Xbox would not connect to the interent with it turned on. I'll try to get the exact wording of the error.
The hotel does have a wired LAN port, which I am using. With it I am able to play multiplayer on Halo, however, NHL26 still will not find an opponent.

EA_Aljo
Community Manager
1 month ago
Apologies for all the frustration with this. Unfortunately, I think it'll continue to happen until you can get off the 172 IP. Can you tell me what the NAT setting is? You can see this under the network settings on your console.
- hootiehome
  New Rookie
  1 month ago
  I ran the NAT test while plugged into the hotel LAN port and it says my NAT Type is Moderate. I next connected to WiFi via my laptop and the NAT type changes to Open. Of note, when connected via my laptop my IP now starts with 192.
  Back to the 172 IP, why is the eSim I got for my phone using that? I thought it was a hotel thing.
  - FoxHoundTiger
    New Veteran
    1 month ago
    Here is the breakdown of why those IPs look different and what it means for your NAT type:
    1. The 192.x.x.x IP (Laptop Wi-Fi)
    When you connect to your laptop's Wi-Fi (likely a hotspot), your laptop acts as a router.
    192.168.x.x is the most common range for private home or local networks.
    NAT Type Open: Your laptop is essentially giving your device a "clear path" to the internet. Because the laptop is doing the heavy lifting and isn't restricting specific ports, your connection appears "Open."
    2. The 172.x.x.x IP (Hotel LAN & eSim)
    It’s easy to assume a 172 IP is specific to the hotel, but it is actually a standard Private IP range (specifically 172.16.0.0 to 172.31.255.255).
    Why the eSim uses it: Mobile carriers almost never give your phone a "Public IP" because there aren't enough IPv4 addresses in the world. Instead, they use CGNAT (Carrier-Grade NAT). They put your phone on a giant internal network (using that 172 range) and then funnel thousands of users through one single public IP.
    Why the Hotel LAN uses it: Large enterprises and hotels use the 172 range because it allows for thousands of more internal addresses than the 192 range.
    NAT Type Moderate: Hotels often block certain "ports" for security and to prevent guests from hogging bandwidth with P2P file sharing or hosting servers. This is why it shows as "Moderate"—the network is letting you out, but it's not letting unsolicited traffic back in.
    Why the VPN "Can't get an IP" on the 172 Network
    This is likely the missing link. When you are on the Hotel LAN (172.x.x.x), the hotel's "Moderate" NAT or firewall might be blocking the specific DHCP or Tunneling requests your VPN needs to establish its own virtual IP address.
    Summary of the IP "Personalities":
    | IP Range | Common Use | Why you see it here |
    | :--- | :--- | :--- |
    | 192.168.x.x | Small Networks | Your laptop's hotspot creates this. |
    | 172.16.x.x | Large Networks | Used by the Hotel and your Mobile Carrier (eSim). |
    | 10.x.x.x | Huge Networks | Often used by VPNs internally or massive corporations. |
    Since it's you're dealing with hotel LAN ports, it sounds like you're traveling! If the LAN port is giving you trouble with the VPN, the laptop Wi-Fi "Open" NAT is definitely your more stable bet for now.
    Does your VPN software have a "Stealth" or "Obfuscation" setting? Turning that on might help it "sneak" past the hotel's 172-range firewall.