Why is Vasco da Gama important to American history?

The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama was the first European to successfully navigate a route around Africa to India.  The Portuguese wanted this route to secure a safe and profitable trade with the East.  Merchants, to this point, found it difficult to make a profit from the Southern route (through the Red Sea) because of the fees or tolls associated with this voyage.  The Northern Route, which was almost completely land-based, was treacherous and also not profitable.  

The discovery of da Gama's route around Africa was important because it established Portugal as the gatekeeper of this water route to India. This is important to American history because it was the catalyst for other European countries to search for an alternative route to India by travelling west across the Atlantic Ocean.  This, of course, led to the "discovery" of new lands in the New World and continued voyages in an attempt to find another route to India.  These voyages of discovery led to the colonization of the future United States.