Ticket sales for a "friendly" football match between Vietnam and English giant Manchester City have been slower than expected, forcing organisers to look at new ways to attract the crowd.

Buying the tickets for the match at My Dinh National Stadium on July 19

Man City will play the Vietnamese national football team in a friendly at My Dinh National Stadium at 8:00 pm on July 27.

Some 20 percent of tickets are unsold.

High prices have been blamed for the slow sales - the cheapest VND600,000 (USD28.50) tickets sold out in three hours.

But Vietnam's leading sports commentator, Quang Huy, said Man City is simply not a draw for Vietnamese fans.

"Man City is an emerging football team and still quite new to many Vietnamese spectators who feel more familiar to the Big Four of  M.U, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool through the Premier League," Huy said.

A music event has now been added to the pre-match warm-up in hopes of drawing a full house.

As a further incentive, Saigon Hanoi Bank (SHB), the main sponsor of the match, will hold a lucky ballot at half-time with first prize of VND10m, and five VND5m prizes.

SHB chairman Do Quang Hien spent USD1.5m to bring the Man City to Hanoi.