Put it inside your <footer> by all means, but the most fitting element is the small element.
The HTML5 spec for this says:
Small print typically features
disclaimers, caveats, legal
restrictions, or copyrights. Small
print is also sometimes used for
attribution, or for satisfying
licensing requirements.
it is better to include it in a <small> tag
The HTML <small> tag is used for specifying small print.
Small print (also referred to as "fine print" or "mouseprint") usually refers to the part of a document that contains disclaimers, caveats, or legal restrictions, such as copyrights.
And this tag is supported in all major browsers.
In a link, if you put rel=license it:
Indicates that the main content of the current document is covered by the copyright license described by the referenced document.
Source: http://www.w3.org/wiki/HTML/Elements/link
So, for example, <a rel="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">Copyrighted but you can use what's here as long as you credit me</a> gives a human something to read and lets computers know that the rest of the page is licensed under the CC BY 4.0 license.