James Begley

James Begley is an entrepreneur and former professional athlete who is the founder and CEO of PickStar, Australia’s largest marketplace to book sports stars for events, marketing campaigns and fan experiences.
In parallel James has founded and is CEO of Vlast. Vlast is now the leading global software provider for Leagues, clubs and teams for player appearances and activations.

His career has been dedicated to high performance from the moment he was drafted to the AFL as a 17-year-old. He spent seven years as an AFL player, initially with St Kilda before returning to his home state to join the Adelaide Crows.

Post-AFL career James joined forces with AFL champion Matthew Pavlich, building an online platform that provides fast, affordable and direct connections to over 3000 sports stars and personalities. The Adelaide-based startup has facilitated over 5000 deals for brands, corporates, schools, NFPs and fans.

James’ foundations as a CEO have been enhanced through his work as General Manager (by the age of 27) of Leadership and Development with Fremantle Football Club as well as being the founding director of Tract Group, a corporate leadership and development company. James spent over a decade helping organisations such as Mirvac, Landcorp, Fremantle Football Club, Bendigo Bank and CGU develop and implement strategies to get the most out of their teams and emerging leaders, prior to putting his focus into Pickstar.

Overall, James describes himself as being entrepreneurial in spirit and loves nothing more than being able to challenge himself with new possibilities.