Collingwood star Scott Pendlebury has launched a near $3 million lawsuit against his longtime friend and soccer club entrepreneur Jason Sourasis after a business deal between them went sour.
The two-time premiership player alleges Sourasis, the boss of dormant A-League team Western United, and his financial planning group misappropriated $2.15 million for use in his development projects.
One of the stars of the AFL, Collingwood’s Scott Pendlebury has launched legal action in the Supreme Court of Victoria.Credit: via Getty Images
At the time, Pendlebury was a client of Sourasis’ financial planning group, Strategic Financial Planning. He also alleges that he loaned $300,000 to Sourasis that was never repaid.
Pendlebury – who also used to count Sourasis as his AFL agent – is seeking the return of money he alleges was taken from his bank account and repayment of the loan, as well as interest and damages.
The star Magpie has recruited leading corporate lawyer Leon Zwier for the Supreme Court case. Zwier declined to comment, as did Pendlebury’s managers.
Sourasis also declined to comment when approached by this masthead on Monday, saying he had not been formally served with the court documents and did not know what the claim was about. He later sent a statement that said: “the allegations are vehemently denied and as a legal process has been started we can’t make any further comment at this stage.”
Ironbark Fields, in the outer Melbourne suburb of Tarneit, is slated to form part of a massive development led by Western Melbourne Group. Credit: Jason South
Pendlebury remained a client of Sourasis after the latter’s bitter business fallout with fellow AFL agent and former business partner Liam Pickering more than 10 years ago.
The claim explains that Pendlebury and his private investment company had been a client of Sourasis’ Strategic Financial Planning firm from 2013 and during that time the firm had access to his bank account details as part of the retainer agreement.
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Lawyers for Pendlebury allege that over that time, Strategic transferred money from his accounts to Sourasis’ projects more than 50 times.
“In around February 2025, Mr Pendlebury became aware that, between January 2015 and December 2023, Mr Sourasis had transferred funds totalling $2,148,900.00 from S Pendlebury Investment Co’s Macquarie bank account (Macquarie funds) to an account or accounts associated with Mr Sourasis,” the court documents claim.
The largest transfer was a $305,000 payment “To Strategic Financial” while $488,000 was transferred under the description of Seaford Beach between 2015 and 2016, which is believed to be tied to an acquisition of a beachside development site close to a swamp.
Some of the money was sent to entities tied to Sourasis’ Western Melbourne Group – a company proposing a public private partnership to develop a sprawling sporting, entertainment and health complex on Melbourne’s western fringe.
The development would also include a new stadium for the financially struggling Western United team.
From 2020, the documents say, dozens of transactions from Pendelbury’s account were made to a trust known as Sayers Road Investment Co, while from 2023 payments were recorded as being Pendlebury’s investment in the Western Melbourne Group.
Lawyers for Pendlebury allege that the payments were made without his permission.
“Each of the transfers of the Macquarie Funds was made without the knowledge or consent of Mr Pendlebury or S Pendlebury Investment Co.”
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It adds that the transfer of the funds was not authorised under the retainer between Pendlebury and the financial planning group.
“In the circumstances, and in breach of the fiduciary duties, each of Mr Sourasis and Strategic Financial Planning misappropriated the Macquarie Funds.”
Pendlebury’s lawyers argue that Sourasis and Strategic Financial Planning have breached their responsibilities because the transfers were not disclosed, not made in good faith and gave rise to a conflict of interest because they were made to entities linked to Sourasis.
Sourasis has faced a range of financial headaches this year, among them claims from the tax office over unpaid business debts including for the soccer club.
Western United, which is to be the anchor tenant at the proposed stadium in Tarneit, has so far avoided being formally placed into liquidation after racking up nearly $8 million in debt to the tax office.
The club, where Sourasis is executive chairman, has been placed into “hibernation” and will not compete in the A-League this year as it fights to stay afloat.
Last month it won a stay on orders from the Federal Court appointing liquidators, to allow it to have further mediation talks with the ATO.
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The club has also recently won back its licence after it appealed Football Australia’s decision to strip it of its playing rights.
The court documents also say that on March 15, 2023, Pendlebury agreed to loan $300,000 to Sourasis, but demanded it be repaid a day later.
A week later, the pair had negotiated a new agreement where the loan was to be repaid in six to 12 months at an interest rate of 50 per cent a year.
Pendlebury says the money has not been repaid, despite requests to do so, and that Sourasis owes him the $300,000 plus interest.
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