Information sharing in private value lottery contest

•We investigate contestants' incentives to disclose their valuations of the prize.•A private value Tullock contest model is considered.•Information sharing arises in equilibrium if types are concentrated enough.•Sharing information is strictly dominated if types are sufficiently dispersed.

We investigate players' incentives to disclose information on their private valuations of the prize ahead of a rent-seeking contest: Information sharing arises in equilibrium if types are concentrated enough, whereas sharing information is strictly dominated if types are sufficiently dispersed.