How did the Treaty of Tordesillas affects the European settlement of the Americas?

The Treaty of Tordesillas, signed in 1494, divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between Spain and Portugal along a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde islands. This agreement helped to prevent conflicts between the two countries as they expanded their territories in the Americas. It also influenced the areas where each country focused its colonization efforts, with Portugal concentrating on Brazil and Spain on Central and South America.