Championship Summary
And that’s all she wrote… the winner of our 2021 March Meowdness Tournament is… #10 Moss The Rat (@mosstherat). Based out of the UK, Moss becomes our first ever international champion, taking the crown away from our 2020 champion, #2 Smush (@smushofficial).
Moss led each of the last three rounds in votes, with 604 total in the championship to Smush’s 283. It was a battle, but Moss and her hoomans rallied round after round. Congratulations to Moss, Smush and our other Final Four Accounts, Gibson and Louis, who will each be receiving a prize pack with goodies from Catfluence and all of our amazing sponsors, which can be found below.
Thank you to everyone who made the second year of this tournament a success. We are certainly looking forward to getting some sleep and taking the next week off this page, but can’t wait to make 2022 even bigger and better than ever! Be safe and take care!
Final 4 Summary & Championship Preview
It’s time… the cats are set for the 2021 Catfluence March Meowdness Championship matchup. #2 seed and 2020 tournament champion, @smushofficial (672k followers), will be facing off this years’ Cinderella, #10 @mosstherat (4.2k followers).
Smush will have his work cut out for him against Moss, who is the total votes leader throughout this tournament. In her Final Four matchup against #4 @thegibsonchronicles alone, she received 588 votes.
Moss and her supporters will need to keep that up to stand a chance against favorite Smush. Tune into our IG stories on 4/5 at 9 PM ET to vote for the winner in the poll.
Elite 8 Summary & Final 4 Preview
Get your popcorn ready, because we’re down to the Final Four! In the East Region, #6 @thegibsonchronicles took down #9 @chef_aussie_angel and #10 @mosstherat over #13 @blublu.ragdoll. In the West Region, in our clash of the titans, #2 @smushofficial conquered #1 @venustwofacecat, and #7 @louis_the_kitten_prince over #13 @abdulscats!
Gibson won by a narrow margin of three votes of Angel, and the highest in the round was Moss with 612 – a 2021 tournament record!
There are three countries represented in the Final Four: Canada, the UK, and the US! The next round of matchups (Gibson vs. Moss and Smush vs. Louis) will begin around 5 PM Eastern Time. Follow along in our stories to vote for your favorite!
Sweet 16 Summary & Elite 8 Preview
And then there were eight! A few more notable upsets went down, including #9 Chef Aussie Angel over #4 Tuna The Adventure Cat, #7 Louis The Kitten Prince over #3 Juno The Blind Cat, and #10 Moss The Rat over #6 The Cat House.
A few power players remain, including #1 Venus Two Face Cat, who narrowly escaped the grasp of #12 Count Salem by 16 votes – 330 to 314 – and reigning champion, #2 Smush. These two powerhouses will face off on Wednesday 3/31.
The highest vote-getter was Moss, with 470 total, which is the highest of this years’ tournament thus-far. Our remaining contestants come from around the world, including the USA, Canada, the UK, and Australia.
To see the Elite 8 matchups, download our bracket below. The top left and top right regions will battle it out in our IG stories starting Tuesday morning, and the bottom right and bottom left will begin Wednesday morning.
Second Round Summary & Sweet 16 Preview
And just like that, we’re down to the Sweet 16! The pack is being led by #1 seeded Venus Two Face Cat with over 2M followers, with our reigning champion, #2 Smush (270K), and Final Four participant, #3 Juno The Blind Cat (101K) not far behind.
In our inaugural 2020 tournament, Juno actually upset Venus in a Round of 32 matchup, only to be defeated in the Final Four by Smush. If Venus and Smush both win, they face each other in the next matchup. If Smush and Juno were to each win again after that, they would face each other for a chance to go to the finals!
Also in Round 2, a major upset occurred to our #1 overall seed, Smoothie The Cat (2.2M followers) against the legendary #9 Chef Angel from Australia, but will face another worthy opponent next in #4 Tuna The Adventure Cat (69.5K).
In the same region, #6 The Gibson Chronicles (10.3k) took down #3 Nathan The Beach Cat (540K). #9 Sir Simon of Says (4.3K), also defeated another top contender, #1 Smudge Lord (1.4M).
Other notable upsets this round included:
- Blu Blu Rag Doll (1.6K) over Chloe The Serval (38.2K)
- Moss The Rat (3.8K) over Owl Kitty (741K)
- Louis The Kitten Prince (5.3K) over Stryker The Cat (808K)
Overall, Venus and Smush had the most votes this round, with 268 and 262 respectively.
There are some more amazing matchups coming up on Saturday, March 27 and Sunday, March 28th. Download and fill out your brackets below, and be sure to vote on our IG stories!
First Round Summary & Second Round Preview
The first round of the 2021 tournament began with several big upsets, similar to the hooman tournament this year! Each poll received over 300 votes!
Here were some notable upsets:
- #12 Count Salem over #5 Fat Cat Hercules
- #13 Lord Milton over #4 Dancin’ Zeus (six vote difference)
- #14 Bobby over #3 Smushball (four vote difference)
- #13 Blu Blu over #4 Tony (100 vote difference)
- #14 Cheeto over #3 Nacho
- #12 JoJo over #5 Conan & Gladys
- #15 Shelby over #2 Pudge
- #16 Jalie The Tigershark over #1 Waffles
- #12 Meister The Travelcat over #5 Munster The Wolfcat
- #11 Wyatt over #6 Zolder
There were several matchups that came down to the wire. #16 Lilly almost pulled off the ultimate upset of #1 Smoothie. Unfortunately, Lilly came one single vote short.
Another close matchup was between #3 Nathan The Beach Cat (Nathan is a female, FYI) and #117 LuLu The Champ. LuLu came so close, but also lost by one single vote.
Overall, the highest vote-getter was Louis The Kitten Prince with 214. On to the Round of 32!
2020 Summary & 2021 Preview
2020 was a difficult year for many of us because of the COVID-19 pandemic and overall civil unrest due to racial injustice and the presidential election.
For sports fans such as myself, one of the most difficult parts was not having a 2020 March Madness Tournament as a distraction from all the actual madness.
I was stuck at home with no sports like most of the world, and once the NCAA tournament was cancelled, I came up with the idea to create a bracket with cat accounts.
It was all done very last minute, and I mainly just picked popular accounts I knew of on IG, as well as others who I have featured or collaborated with in the past. Every few days I would post matchups to the Catfluence IG story and followers would vote on who they wanted to win. (This year, Catfluencers were able to nominate themselves or others for entry by filling out this form)
Competitors would battle it out, sharing the stories and getting their own fan bases to vote on their behalf. In the end, @smushofficial ended up taking home the championship and winning a bunch of our Catfluence merch.
This year, we’ve got several sponsors on board donating prizes (see below), which will go out to the Final Four. We’ll also be giving away more Catfluence merch to those who get involved throughout – one lucky winner who fills out the bracket and shares to their story will get a prize, and one lucky winner who guesses the correct champion will also get a prize!
This years’ contest will follow the same timeline as actual March Madness (beginning March 19th). The only main differences will be there isn’t going to be a “First Four”, and we will add an additional matchup to determine third and fourth place. Seeding was based on follower count.
Some high-profile accounts from last year, including Smush, Juno, Pizza and more will be returning, along with some new up and comers. Fill out the bracket below in a Google Doc or PDF format!
This was a fun distraction for me last year, and I hope you are all able to enjoy it with me this year as well!
2021 Catfluence March Meowdness Sponsors
Tournament sponsors listed below in alphabetical order:
Bad Cat Coffee Company
Bad Cat was founded by Traci and inspired by her beloved cat, Peaches.
Bad Cat Coffee Co. serves locally roasted, coffee, espresso, cat-themed lattes and so much more at the Morgan Street Food Hall, 411 W. Morgan Street, Raleigh, NC 27603.
They also ship anywhere in the USA and deliver in their local area in North Carolina. They will be giving a bag of coffee and a mug to the first-place winner!
Catfluence
If you’re here, you know who we are by now, but feel free to learn more about Catfluence here.
We will be putting up hats, stickers, mugs, and more as prizes this year! Each finalist will also receive a featured post on our social profiles!
Cat Lady Academy
Founded by Nikki Hess, Philly native, marketer, and meowmy to @mannyhalloweencat, Cat Lady Academy provides personal coaching and online courses for cat IG accounts, along with tips for new & established accounts.
You can check out the courses she currently has available by visiting the CLA website. Nikki and Cat Lady Academy will be giving away one of her Pitch Purrfect Bundles to each of the top three winners.
These guides will help you work with brands and promote their products on your cat’s Instagram!
Living Art USA
Living Art USA was founded in 2010 by Jane Morocco. Jane is an industry leader as well as an accomplished author, environmentalist, philanthropist and community activist.
Living Art features luscious, low maintenance plant varieties perfect for any urban growing environment that are pet and child-Safe.
The winner will receive a Pet-Friendly Ponytail Palm (Beaucarnea), which is a plant native to eastern Mexico, and perfect for those who are business travelers as their round trunk is used to store water for long periods of time.
Meowy Janes
Founded in 2018 by wedding/engagement photographer, Bill and his wife, Carly, Meowy Janes provides the ultimate catnip and catnip alternatives! Based out of New Jersey, their products are all-natural, farm-grown, and sustainably sourced.
Their products are available in their online store, as well as on Etsy/Amazon and at local markets, pop-up boutiques, and cat conventions. Wholesale orders are also available.
First place will receive one of their Catnip Alternative Variety Boxes, and there will be a few other smaller prizes distributed to the other finalists.
Nutri-Vet Pet Supplements
Nutrivet makes veterinarian-formulated products to keep pets healthy and happy. They are made with the highest quality standards, because caring is their top priority, and the animal always comes first.
They will be awarding several of their products to the top finishers, including their Eye Rinse, Hairball Paw-Gel (Chicken), and Multi-Vitamin Paw-Gel (Salmon).
If you’re looking for their products, try their store locator!
Oskar & Klaus
Oskar was a blind cat who sadly passed away in 2018. His sidekick and best friend is known as “The Klaus.” Also part of the family are blind cats George and Juno, who made a run in our tournament last year!
Oskar & Klaus has their own online store with merch, stickers, books, and more! Their “Mission to Cataria” book was an official selection for “Story Time From Space”, and was read by astronaut Ricky Arnold from the International Space Station.
For this years’ prizes, they will be giving away a pawtographed book pack with audiobook and five coupons for a free box of ökocat litter!
Sun Paw Co.
Sun Paw Co. was founded by Bella and is based in Indiana. They sell BioThane® pet gear, which is a durable, waterproof, easy to clean and weldable polyester webbing.
Their awesome products, including leashes, blankets, and more, can be found on Esty. First place will receive blanket and a cat leash from Sun Paw, while second and third will receive a leash.
Trenton Corrugated Products
Trenton Corrugated Products is a corrugated sheet plant that specializes in the design and manufacturing of custom-sized containers and die cuts. While they specialize in boxes, they can create any type of corrugated product you could ever need.
Found in 1971, TCP was purchased by Cheryl, Ian, and Alex Bernstein in 2019. Their 160,000 sq. ft. facility continues to operate out of Trenton, New Jersey, a city with a very rich history in the United States.
Trenton Corrugated is sponsoring all of the boxes that our prizes will be shipped in. (Pro tip: the boxes can be repurposed as indoor cat shelters and toys)
The Pizza Cat & Uncle Grumpy Inc.
You’ve probably seen The Pizza Cat floating around the internet, well they are the original creators of this viral kitty!
They make hilarious original memes and videos with their two cats, Pizza and Cheeto, who both participated in the Meowdness last year. They also run the IG account @chonksdointhings.
Check out the Pizza Cat Party Website to learn more as well as the Uncle Grumpy Inc Esty store for merch. Stickers will be sent out to our finalists!