Successive early exits from the Rugby World Cup have made New Zealanders less confident of an All Black victory this year even as hosts.

A new UMR Research poll shows that of NZers surveyed who were interested in rugby, 77 per cent were confident the All Blacks would win this year's World Cup in New Zealand, compared to before the 2003 World Cup, hosted by Australia, when 85 per cent of rugby fans were confident they would win.

Interest in rugby in New Zealand has increased, however, with 69 per cent of 750 people surveyed saying they were interested in the game compared to 66 per cent back in 2003, UMR Research said.

For this year's World Cup, 39 per cent rated South Africa as New Zealand's most serious opponents, followed by Australia on 32 per cent.

Opinion was divided on how the All Blacks should build up to the World Cup with 51 per cent saying they should win as many games as possible and 44 per cent saying they should build towards the cup even if that means losing games.

The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 per cent.

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