A contextual in-content link outperforms a footer link to the same page because it sits inside relevant surrounding text within a relevant section, so it carries topical context and a genuine signal of reader intent, while a footer link is sitewide, contextless boilerplate that Google tends to discount. The relevance and the placement together give the contextual link more weight, even when both point to the identical destination. This is observed behavior rather than a stated rule, but it shows up consistently enough to plan around.
The contextual link earns its weight from where it lives. When a link appears inside a paragraph that is genuinely about the linked topic, the words and section around it tell Google what the link is for and confirm that the two pages relate. It also reflects real intent, because a reader engaged with that passage who clicks the link is following the thread of the content, which is a more meaningful action than scanning a footer. The link is editorial and specific, embedded in a particular place for a particular reason, and that specificity is exactly the signal a search engine wants.
The footer link works against itself on both counts. Because it appears in the same footer on every page of the site, it has no relationship to whatever page it happens to sit on, so it carries no topical context, and its sitewide repetition marks it as navigational boilerplate rather than an editorial endorsement. Google has long learned to treat these repeated, contextless links as low-value, discounting them precisely because they are everywhere and tied to nothing in particular. The same destination linked this way simply does not get the relevance or the trust that a single well-placed in-content link does.
The practical move is to link from relevant in-content context rather than relying on the footer to do the work. When you want a page to benefit from an internal link, place that link inside a passage that genuinely relates to it, on a page where the connection makes sense, instead of adding it to a sitewide footer and assuming the link counts the same. Put the link where the relevance is, and it will pull far more weight.