The International Canoe Federation (ICF) made YouTube its number one priority in 2024, transforming its channel, Planet Canoe, into a dominant force in sports media. Climbing 33 places to top spot among IFs on YouTube, ICF grew its subscriber base by an impressive +432% (62k to 333k) through a high-volume, strategic content approach.

Key shifts driving growth

According to Adam Collins, ICF Global Lead: Digital Platforms and Social Content, three major changes fuelled ICF success:

1. A huge push on Shorts: maximising reach and engagement through bite-sized, high-frequency content.

2. Targeting key markets: using data to adapt content schedules for maximum impact in the USA and India.

3. Placing powerful athletes at the centre of storytelling: using the collaboration tool on Instagram.

4. YouTube Memberships & live coverage: unlocking a new revenue stream and creating a more engaged community.

“No other platform currently offers the same level of organic reach and discoverability.”

Balancing Shorts & long-form content ICF outpaced larger organisations in video content production, with a key focus on YouTube Shorts. It posted the 3rd-highest number of Shorts of any IF while maintaining the exact average IF balance in 2024 (26% Shorts, 74% traditional videos). ICF identified that each content format served a different purpose and used AI-driven insights to define common high-performing themes.

Shorts

Purpose: reaching new audiences/increasing engagement as Shorts shown to non-subscribers more frequently.

Themes: nature, humour, workout-themed content – designed to engage people who may not be familiar with paddling.

“By using Shorts to drive discovery and long-form content to keep viewers invested, we’ve created a strong, sustainable audience base.”

Long-form videos

Purpose: converting casual viewers into dedicated fans, ideal for providing deeper insights/covering event highlights.

Themes: race results, event highlights, in-depth analysis – catering to more engaged fans.

Strategic & data-driven approach

The success of ICF was fuelled by a sharp focus on key markets and real-time content adaptation. By identifying USA and India as major growth areas, ICF adjusted their posting schedule to align with peak viewing times in these countries. In addition, tools like Grabyo allowed the IF to repurpose live content quickly, add branding, and drive traffic to paid streams – helping scale their reach while maintaining high engagement.

YouTube Channel Memberships: unlocking new revenue & engagement

Another key ICF shift was the integration of YouTube Channel Memberships to make live coverage more interactive/valuable by offering exclusive content/strengthening their community.

This has unlocked a new revenue stream that feeds directly back into further content production. ICF sees a major opportunity for expanding the Channel Memberships offerings/investing more in interactive content. By creating educational advice, behind-the-scenes exclusives, live Q&As, and premium content for members, ICF can build heartfelt connections with its audience and strengthen long-term engagement.