The popup is the difference between opt-out and opt-in. Opt-out means the website loads, creates all the cookies it wants unless you find some hidden option to

The popup is the difference between opt-out and opt-in. Opt-out means the website loads, creates all the cookies it wants unless you find some hidden option to disable cookies. Opt-in means the website loads, it does not create cookies, but because the website wants to create cookies it will show a popup asking permission (opt-in), because it is illegal otherwise. The website does not have to create cookies. The creators of the website could simply choose that cookies are not necessary and in that case they are not required to show any consent request. The EU cookie opt-in legislation works as intended. We are stuck in this adversarial environment unfortunately.