Sports - TrailRunner International

Scott Sonju

Scott Sonju is a Managing Director based in Dallas/Fort Worth who advises the firm’s sports industry clients on a wide range of matters across corporate strategy, finance, operations, communications, and public/private partnerships. Prior to joining TrailRunner International, Scott was President of SNS Consulting and for five years was President of Neltex Sports, an investment and advisory consortium that advises, develops, and owns and/or operates sports-related businesses. During that time, Scott forged a historic partnership with the China Baseball Association, launched a professional rugby club, advised buyers and sellers of sports assets, and served as a senior advisor to Major League Cricket.

For more than a decade, Scott was President and Co-Owner of the Frisco RoughRiders affiliate of Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers, where he was named Texas Executive of the Year. During Scott’s tenure, the RoughRiders led its league in attendance and revenue and received myriad industry and community awards. Scott began his career with the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks organization.

Scott is active in the community and has served on multiple civic and charitable boards. He has been recognized twice by the Dallas Business Journal as one of the city’s “40 Under 40.”

Scott earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from Texas A&M University and his MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. He is an adjunct professor at Southern Methodist University, where he teaches a master’s-level sports sponsorship course. Scott loves to read, hike, travel, write, and teach. He and his wife Amy have four children and make their home in North Texas.

Maddie Kraft

Maddie Kraft is a Director based in Phoenix, where she specializes in supporting clients in collegiate, professional, and international sports.

Maddie has more than eight years of experience in the business of sports. During her time at TrailRunner, Maddie led the formation of the initial strategic plan for TrailRunner Sports alongside partners at Legends. She plays a key role on teams providing strategic communications and business strategy solutions for NFL, MLB, EPL, and “Power 4” collegiate clients.

Most recently, Maddie was an Associate at TrailRunner and previously served as Manager of Corporate Partnership Marketing for the Dallas Cowboys, where she helped develop significant commercial relationships with more than 20 corporate partners. Before that, Maddie was a Partner Service and Activation Coordinator for the Arizona Cardinals Football Club, where she managed client relationships and oversaw contractual agreements for more than 40 corporate partners, including leading the onboarding efforts for the new naming rights partner, State Farm, in 2018.

Maddie holds a Master of Business Administration from the Harbert College of Business at Auburn University as well as a Bachelor of Science in marketing and a Bachelor of Arts in sports business from the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.

Maddie enjoys giving back to her alma mater, Arizona State, serving as an Executive Mentor for the Sports Business Scholars program. In her free time, Maddie likes to exercise, hike with her dog Charlie, travel with her husband, read, and work on her golf game. 

Jim Wilkinson

Jim Wilkinson serves as Executive Chairman of TrailRunner International.

Prior to founding TrailRunner, Jim served as SVP, Head of International Corporate Affairs for Alibaba Group, the world’s largest online and mobile marketplace. At Alibaba Group, Jim played a key leadership role in the company’s historic IPO in 2014. He also designed and led Alibaba’s international communications strategy, and he built the company’s international corporate communications and government relations teams.

Prior to joining Alibaba Group, Jim served as Executive Vice President, Communications for PepsiCo, a global food and beverage leader with net revenues of more than $65 billion. Jim joined PepsiCo from Brunswick Group, where he served in San Francisco as Managing Partner for International Business and Financial Strategy, providing strategic counsel on global corporate mandates spanning international operations, corporate and financial communications, corporate reputation, investor relations, crisis management, and litigation. Jim also worked for Brunswick Group in Texas, where he established and built the firm’s Dallas/Fort Worth office.

Prior to Brunswick Group, Jim served as Chief of Staff for U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Henry M. Paulson, serving as Paulson’s senior strategist and counselor, and working on matters of financial policy and crisis management. Prior to his work for the Treasury, Jim served as Senior Advisor to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and worked with Rice in The White House at the National Security Council as Deputy National Security Advisor for Communications. From 2002-2003, Jim was Director of Strategic Communications for General Tommy R. Franks at U.S. Central Command, and from 2000-2001 served in the White House as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Communications. Prior to working in the White House, Jim spent several years working in the U.S. Congress for House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX) and the National Republican Congressional Committee.

Jim served as an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserves and taught international communications at The Johns Hopkins University. Jim holds degrees from the University of Texas at Arlington (BBA, Finance), The Johns Hopkins University (MA), and Wheaton College (MA, Biblical Studies and Theology). Jim is also a graduate of the Yale University School of Management Global Executive Leadership Program.

Jim serves as a national board member for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, on the Board of Trustees for The Women’s Sports Foundation, and on the Board of Directors for Headstrong – a national mental health treatment practice of choice for our nation’s military, veterans, and their family members.

Jim is an endurance sports enthusiast and enjoys trail running, playing chess, snowboarding, and playing acoustic guitar. Jim also has a love of aviation and is a commercially rated pilot.

Jamie Zaninovich

Jamie Zaninovich, a Managing Director in the San Francisco Bay Area, draws on nearly 30 years of global sports industry leadership experience to advise clients on matters related to operations and governance, marketing, sponsorships, media rights, crisis management, sustainability and social responsibility, and international business development.

Prior to TrailRunner International, Jamie served as the Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer at the Pac-12 Conference. Before that, he was the Commissioner of the West Coast Conference and a senior athletic administrator at both Princeton University and Stanford University.

Jamie has negotiated and managed long-term media rights agreements with every major U.S. broadcast outlet and partnered with professional sports leagues, professional sports teams, and governmental agencies to organize and host large-scale sporting events including NCAA March Madness, the Rose Bowl, and the College Football Playoff. He also has led collegiate sports conference expansion and international business development in global markets and served on the NCAA Men’s Basketball Committee. A recognized leader in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in sports, he developed the Pac-12/Southwest Athletic Conference Legacy Series in partnership with the Equal Justice Initiative. He also designed and implemented the first collegiate conference sustainability program in the U.S. while at the Pac-12.

Jamie was named to Sports Business Journal’s “Forty Under 40” list. He regularly lectures on sports business at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley, and he sits on multiple boards, including the Green Sports Alliance, the San Jose Sports Authority, and the Positive Coaching Alliance National Advisory Board.

A native of Eugene, Oregon, Jamie is a graduate of Stanford and the Stanford University Graduate School of Business and resides in Millbrae, California with his wife Karen and their two sons, Max and Lucas.