S cottish football is still attempting to make sense of itself.

Moods have calmed, mostly, since the weeks of intense lobbying prompted by Rangers entering administration then failing to achieve a Company Voluntary Arrangement, but that spell of upheaval will eventually come to seem a distraction. The future of the game was once, after all, considered the essential concern.

The topic of league reconstruction tends to generate widespread tedium. That is the result of endless failures to reach a conclusion. Yet no issue more clearly emphasises the opposing views of clubs and supporters, and reducing the distance that separates them has seemed beyond all of the creative responses. It doesn't help, of course, that the answer to Scottish football's declining standards has been mistakenly reduced to a simple calculation: 10 teams, 12 teams, 14 teams or 16 teams in the top-flight?

Other factors are critical, not least how income is distributed among clubs, how supporters can gain a more influential voice, how to draw fans back to their clubs, and how to improve the general level of technical ability of Scotland's young footballers. Not all of these matters will have been raised at yesterday's meeting of the SFA's professional game board, but a common theme will have been discussed: the appetite for change.

The current circumstances are unsettling enough, since the SPL struggled to pay its member clubs the first instalment of their collective sponsorship and broadcast revenues. Rangers continue to draw the largest crowds in the country, despite being in the third division, as well as the most impressive television viewing figures. Yet these are quirks compared to the enduring puzzles, most notably how to improve Scottish football as a whole.

Celtic are opposed to a change in the way money is distributed, since that reduces their income. Yet that seems a short-sighted view when a better quality of competition will make them a better team. The losses to Celtic will have less impact than the benefits to the other top-flight clubs. Already, it is widely assumed that Neil Lennon's side will comfortably win the title during the seasons that Rangers are out of the top-flight, which undermines the credibility of the SPL.

League reconstruction is only part of the solution – supporters will continue to gripe about kick-off times being moved for television schedules and ticket prices – but in some ways it sets the tone for change. Nobody was inclined to be radical when the overriding aim was to keep four Old Firm games on the schedule every season, to maintain the level of broadcast income. SPL clubs are now adjusting to the consequences for the television contract of the loss of those derby encounters, but that also allows the governing bodies to be more innovative.

Personal difficulties need to be overcome, since resentment lingers from the summer's turmoil. SFL clubs, in particular, did not appreciate being dictated to, and there is a feeling among the lower league teams that they are in a strong bargaining position while Rangers are estranged from the SPL. Yet the discord needs to be overcome for the benefit of the game as a whole. Crowds at Tuesday night's Scottish Communities League Cup ties were meagre, and even though that often happens in the early rounds of cup competitions, particularly when the weather was so unappealing, a sense of disaffection could set in.

Celtic, and Rangers, have explored the possibilities of moving to England, but that remains an unlikely scenario, even if UEFA are said to be interested in cross-border competitions involving neighbouring nations. The governing body is alarmed at the growing gap between the elite clubs of the leading five European football nations – Spain, England, Italy, France and Germany – and the rest, including teams of significant heritage, such as the Old Firm.

The regionalisation of European football is unlikely in the short-term, however, and Scottish football needs to find its own solutions. A top-flight of 10 teams was the compromise to keep four Old Firm games in the calendar, and other possibilities can now be explored. A single governing body would be preferable to the clashes of interests that currently exist, and some established routines are worth maintaining, such as the play-offs, which generate excitement and crowds.

The top division needs refreshed, though. Two leagues of 12 would allow teams to play each other twice then split. The top eight would then contest the title and European places, while the bottom four and the top four of the second flight would play for the promotion and relegation places. The bottom eight would play to avoid dropping down to the lower leagues, which could be two regional divisions of 10. That format would at least ensure most teams would be playing for something throughout the season, across a 34-game campaign in the top two leagues.

Other structures are possible, like two top leagues of 14, or even a 16-team league, but now that the subject is back on the agenda, there should be no restraints. Every outcome should be considered, because the game needs rejuvenation. The governing bodies were discussing strategy yesterday, but Scottish football is in greater need of action.